JUST STOP PAYING TAXES!!!! I stopped paying income tax two years ago, by simply filing exempt and all I pay now is medicare and SSI. Our tax payer dollars funds everything the government does. We rank #1 in defense spending, in 2011 we spent over 741 TRILLION dollars that's more than the next 15 countries COMBINED!! The only way to stop this madness is if we all band together and stop paying our damn taxes. We can't count on the president or politicians to change things for us.
Two comments below mine, "why didn't he suggest this shit in '93 as labor sec.", is almost exactly what popped in to my head when I saw a video titled "Robert Reich-Military-Industrial Congressional Complex". Indeed, who the fuck is Reich to "speak out" against the political influence of corporations that sell war? Rather hypocritical of him considering the eerily similar character of what his financiers are selling and how they (and he) go about getting their corporate needs met.
WHY DIDN'T HE SUGGEST THIS SHIT IN 1993 WHEN HE WAS LABOR SECRETARY. THANKS A LOT FOR SPEAKING OUT NOW, I GUESS BETTER LATE THAN NEVER FOR SELL-OUTS LIKE YOURSELF.
This guy's a bad actor. He workd 4 Ford and Carter and was LABOR SECRETARY in the Clinton Administration. Do your research.This guy stood idly by when Clinton signed NAFTA in '93... the trade agreement that eviscerated what was left of your manufacturing sector and sent millions of jobs everywhere but America.
He might say all the right things and make you feel good, but he's a fraudster thru and thru just trying to cash in on the crisis...chek out the library of books hes published for you.
@sepkloss Oh, he was in the government? That makes him a fraud?! He was in the clinton administration? That means he's responsible for NAFTA?! That's nonsense, which is used to make assertions about his inner motivations that you can't prove and have no way of even knowing. You're saying he's a fraud because you don't like what he's saying, and what he's saying is that corporations should not be able to use your tax dollars to subvert our democracy.
@n8glenn ..Robert Reich does not have principles, he is not a leader.
He chose to work in concert with people who, when making decisions, did not have the interest of the majority in mind, only themselves, their friends, their circle. These men were short-term thinkers, opportunists, salesman. And Reich is the same, else he would have left the circle a long time ago.
@n8glenn ... it doesn't matter because though you would be shunned by the political establishment and could not return to govt, you'd get a book contract and have the chance to further outline your vision, reach more people, then you'd become a college professor...and spend your days teaching the younger generation how to stand up for principles, how to live with integrity, and how to take action and speak out when your government is not acting in the interest of the majority,
@n8glenn...Well, if you had principles and convictions, likely, you might resign your position in protest, your historic resignation would become a media sensation, grant you an automatic spotlight and national stage from which to voice your opposition and express your feelings to your unaware countrymen. Other officials, maybe a senator, perhaps a congressman or two might follow your lead...your thoughts, your concerns, your knowledge might strike a movement outside of dc, might resonate...
@n8glenn ...And you knew, better than anyone else could understand or foresee, that this outcome was inevitable, but none of your colleagues were saying anything or wanted to take a stand or wanted to hear your message, and you felt helpless to stop it from being signed, had no control, couldnt get the president's ear...what would you do? To save your countrymen? What could you do?
@n8glenn Glenn, think about it this way, if you were a high level govt. official, say a cabinet member, and legislation that you didn't believe in- that signified and would mean unprecedented and lasting harm to your nation- made it to the president's desk and he was about to sign it, forever changing the nation and putting it firmly on a course leading to its eventual economic destruction...
Our men and women in the armed forces are not fighting for America or freedom or justice or any other altruistic ideal. They fight for Haliburton, for GE, for Raetheon, for General Dynamics and a hundred other military contractors.
Racist Robert Reich, the Marxist imbecile, said he didn't want jobs going to skilled white construction workers. Yes, Racist Robert, the Marxist Moran, would rather have the construction jobs go to unskilled non-whites...way to ensure that your infrastructure collapses due to failure, Racist Robert the idiot shyster.
This guy is an idiot. What he is recommending is controlling how people spend their own money. Its like saying that their should be a limit on how much any government employee can contribute to a political party because their paycheck comes from government tax dollars. He just hates these companies because of what they represent to liberals which does not make sense because these companies create the weapons that allow us to sleep peacefully at night without threat of foreign invasion.
Surely you can disagree with him without calling him an idiot. I don't think he hates the companies. He does not like the fact that as corporations that do business with the Federal Government they can have any influence at all on who runs that government. Don't buy into the "be afraid, be very afraid" business. Americans have been hoodwinked by that for years. Nobody is saying do away with the military but the only difference between the men and the boys is the price of the toys.
Then we could have a small elite council of say, 15 people, and myself as the head and those are the only people that really matter. The US armed forces then would be our private army and we would start a global conflict, safe in our bunkers, we would not be the ones who would die, and then emerge the victor. That is a great plan. Oh, and I would have an army of military robots built and myself turned into a quasi-immortal virtual AI who can embody various android bodies /w full sensory ability
Here's what I would do if I were one of these 1% and got those contracts. I would raise a secret private army and then release a virus which my labs created with US funded finance, and take over the CDC that has the power to declare martial law regardless of any president or congressional order. I would then use that "crisis" to eliminate my rivals and seize the government. Then change the laws so I am not president for life but something like the head of Iran, some political guru above the law
All corporations should be banned from taking part in politics in any way. Political voice should be reserved for the people alone. Corporations have no national loyalty. They go where the money is. Allowing them to influence government is to allow criminals to write the laws such that their actions are no longer illegal...merely wrong.
@sgillhoolley This, this, this. A thousand times, this. History has repeatedly shown that allowing a corporation the same rights as a private citizen is nonsensical. A corporation has no loyalty to a state and no loyalty to it's people. The only reason the Rich continue to keep their interests in specific areas is because those areas are where they can easily make a quick buck and buy political power with it, influencing major political parties in a manner that benefits them.
@biozamadotcom It's possible he said that as a response to deepening socioeconomic divides between races, but for now let's assume the worst and regard his statement as an expression of racist beliefs.
So if it IS an expression of racism, how does it invalidate what he's saying here?
In Eisenhower"s original speech where he said we must watch out for the military industrial complex. He actually had in the speech, the military, industrial, congressional complex. He struck the congressional part out of the final speech.
But Robert , the congressional part of the statement is not new.
I'm told that Eisenhower called it the "military-industrial-congressional complex" in all the early drafts of the speech. He removed the word "congressional" from the final draft for some reason.
It's slander if it's not true. I can't prove that it is true, but neither has the accusation been proven false. But he is supposed to be a journalist, and they're nothing without a reputation for integrity. Any appearance that they can be bought is damaging.
Rob Reich is the ONLY one of the entire clinton administration that i truly like. the man is a true american patriot and hero, taking precious moments from his life to make a better life for all of us.
Rob Reich is the ONLY one of the entire clinton administration that i truly like. the man is a true american patriot and hero, taking precious moments from his life to make a better life for all of us.
@queenjaneaproximate couple of thing first Fox is number 1 in the ratings. Second why is Fox the only tv news reports on the ATF scandal, Solyndra, banks getting bonuses from the Obama stimulus plan and the truth on the Egypt and Libya revolts and who is actually in involved. I like to know that is can you answer that for me?
@judoyodan i think you are mad Fox and don't know the reason why, also it seems to go by what there competitions says. You still did not answer my question.
@lovejen01 the ratings are for cable and only 20% of population have cable so the other 80% of population aren't even included in the alleged ratings. There is high rate of misinformation among FOX viewers and that's been shown repeatedly. Look it up on the net, dude.
@queenjaneaproximate 1st wrong, more than 20% has cable were you getting these number well maybe from MSNBC and CNN which have more misinformation. The question still is why is Fox only talking about what has been mention before and the others don't. CBS did for couple of weeks then dropped the story and have talked about it since. Little advice wake up.
God Bless You! We need more people like you. Your are very valuable because of your inside knowledge of DC Politics. Here are a couple of YouTube links that have to do with what you say. They are of poor quality because they are old but the message is very powerful and easily understood by the masses. (1) The War Racket (Documentary) youtube.com/watch?v=2Zb_zLaWpB8 and (2) The Constitution (Animated Cartoon) youtube.com/watch?v=-CjrZNi49bE
Reich is correct, but you could say the same thing about Public Sector Unions. Defense Contractors and Public Sector Unions are both economic “rent-seekers.” They are both paid to do work for the government, and then they reinvest the money they earn into lobbying for more government work. They both do this at the expensive of tax payers. The solution is to eliminate special interest groups that support both Republicans and Democrats. –Tijo, Economics major.
@TijoKJose You nailed it 100%. I repeat the 2 links I recently discovered. They are good because they are for The Masses (i.e. 'The Poor and The Desperate') not 'The Middle Class' (i.e. what most politicians cater to). These 2 videos are of poor quality because they are old. However, the message is very powerful and easily understood by The Masses. (1) The War Racket (Documentary) youtube.com/watch?v=2Zb_zLaWpB8 and (2) The Constitution (Animated Cartoon) youtube.com/watch?v=-CjrZNi49bE
This guy needs to burn in hell. He white and old. He should shut his mouth before I fuck his wife and his daughter at the same time whilst his brother watches and jerks off. Oprah for President.
This guy and Ron Paul are the two smartest politicians that I've seen through these years. Reich actually KNOWS about economics and Paul actually WANTS to restore America. If these two were presidential candidates, I'd vote for both of them. We need these people, and we need them NOW.
@goodcommentguy They're not even remotely similar. Watch Reich's video on the economy. Reich is more or less Keynesian and supports government spending aimed at low to middle income Americans as a stimulus during economic downturns (this has been effective in practice). Ron Paul is a libertarian, and assumes that the economy will magically be great if you mostly remove government from the equation (this is really dumb). The only thing they agree on is the bloated MIC.
@BenkaiDebussy How is that dumb? i actually find it dumb to think that government can help more people than a free market can. Look at Bush, did he help anyone? Yet he got reelected. How can government help people when people that vote for politicians mostly do it based on what they want their society to look like, and many of those people see society through the lens of their religion. They will not want to vote for a politician who gives people the right to do things they would not approve of
Great information - particularly that the 10 largest government contractors are military corporations. A good but tepid proposal to ban them from lobbying activities. Obviously we should go much further and cut military spending DEEPLY. Eisenhower also said, "We need an adequate defense. But every dollar spent above adequacy has a long term weakening effect on our nation and its people."
I´m highly suspicious of a jew who has advised Carter, Clinton and now Obama, telling me how to eliminate jewish influence in politics. He was appointed a member of Obama's economic transition advisory board, so why does he have to make a video telling us what should be done? Why isn´t he telling the Kenyan? Besides, WTF does he care about the bleeding American taxpayer.
His whole speel reeks of BULLSHIT and is designed to dispel the, "jews control", image. We ain´t falling for it Bob.
Let's stop calling military spending "Defense Spending." When was the last time we used our military for "Defense"? The majority of military action is aggressive action overseas that has nothing to do with defending the country. Libya, Iraq, Vietnam, etc. This is not defense
where does this money go reich? to build planes, arms, weapons - new technology that saves lives and makes america powerful?
you spend quite a lot of time discussing the behaviors of private companies, yet offer no criticism of the unnecessary and excessive spending of THE GOVERNMENT.
tally up all these expenses and it is still a fraction of the deficit. take all the money from the super rich and it will only cover 10% of our 10 trillion national debt.
Funny how this seems so obvious. However, if we identify public teachers unions as "government contractors", which they are (100% funded by taxpayers), the opinion of the issue changes. If this concept should be implemented, watch them squirm and dance and FIGHT on the definition of "government contractors". If you cant follow the chain, here you go... Taxpayers>teachers>union dues>union lobby groups.
@tinger2000 Schools are public institutions, not private; they are accountable.
Last time an education lobby siphoned money from it's government funding (explicitly for schooling) there was a huge scandal. These private defense companies & contractors don't have any restrictions on their government funding, so they legally can and do use that money to lobby for more funding.
Why should you and I, the American taxpayers, pay government employee unions to lobby and give away money to politicians who will vote for even more govt employee benefits? Same reason we shouldn't give money to Boeing.
@hallavast What are you talking about? State employees are teachers, fire fighters, cops and garbage men. THEY ADD VALUE TO OUR SYSTEM. Please explain to me how bomb makers add value to any society, they dont educate anyone, they dont defend anyone (I can say that because they also sell their weapons to other countries!). You are clearly a rightwinger with little education or commonsense...SMH...
@newave123456 Thanks for the personal attack. It's not about value to "our system". It's about whether or not the taxpayer is FORCED to pay them. Privately employed teachers, fire fighters, security and sanitation workers also have value. It's not about getting rid of these people, its about the way the UNIONS that represent them do not have my interests at heart, and that I'm forced to pay them anyway. One needs to recognize the gun in the room when it comes to taxes.
You folks would do well to transcend the false left -right paradigm that is so neatly constructed for you. The real polemic is between centralization and de-centralization, between compulsion and volunteerism, between collectivism and individualism, between government mandates and natural rights.
@die101 The DARPA project that resulted in the origins of the internet was a research project for communications during wartime, not development for new ways to blow up other countries. The internet as we have it today has VERY little to do with the original DARPA project, and is a result of privatization and commercial interest, not government interest.
"mulling an executive order" ROTFLMFAO....hehehhehehe....seriously....research board of the council on global affairs....you think we have a president.....hahahahahah that's rich.
If Robert is such a genius, why did I laugh out loud when he said 'what the president should not wait to do' bwahahahahahaha!!!! Who did Michelle Obama sit elbow to elbow with on the board of directors of the Chicago Council on Global Affairs with??? Before "hubby" was even a Senator?? WHO?? Executives from the top Military Industrial Corporations. Wake up Sheep. Democracy is a sham and elections are a sharade. Withdraw all support from this outlaw government and its coporate puppets.
If you look at Eisenhower's notes of that speech, you will see that he crossed out the word "congressional" because that was way too hot / controversial. Time has shown us that Eisenhower was way beyond right... and he was a General!!!
We are powerless now people. The people in government are for sale and only the super rich can afford their services. That's why tax breaks for the rich continue to be signed into law even though it makes NO sense at all considering the state of the economy. That's why corporations continue to grow more powerful and organized labor continues to be marginalized. There is no hope for the poor and middle class of this country. We are all just going to scrape by on whatever we can until we die.
Let's say that these companies are banned from political activity. Does anybody operate under the belief that they will just sit there and take it? All they have to do is set up a political action committee or something like it with a different name to represent the industry as opposed to a specific company.
This also means that you have an industry that is being targeted by a particular politician. By keeping them out of politics they may gain more influence and can become a sympathy case.
@Mrpartsunknown , The problem is our Neo-Fascist Corporate dominated Supreme Court (thanks to Bush)
has given corporations individual rights, as Reich eluded to. That is a perversion of the constitution. You also have to add in that many of these, high tech systems, are systems the pentagon does not want. These people are self serving egotists not patriots. Gates claimed are problems in Afghanistan are because we left in the 80's, I say our problems are because we got involved, period.
WW2 spending on arms got the U.S economy out of the great depression, it seems like keynes never existed. U.S spending as percentage of GDP is just 4 percent.
Whilst Reich/Clinton balanced the FedBudge (boo-yah), they (jews) starved hundreds o' thousands of little Iraqi children to death. We are still MORALLY BANKRUPT. ---No way out America, you are skrewed.
wow. im 15 and i love listening to this guy. he should definetly run for president. aint nobody got dirt on him. keep speaking the truth man!!!!!!!!!!
@paladain55 - If you're the future of America then you're the next in a long line of Goose-stepping fascists. You're so indoctrinated you're going to march the world into a thousand years of darkness. The youth Nazis like you will continue to hate America, whites, private property, and the rich to elect another fascist into office. If that happens you'll be the next marched off to the gas chambers by your political messiahs because you're too stupid from indoctrination to look in a mirror.
@thomaserossi whats your problem??? i agree with this guy do you understand? im american. im white. ive grown up in a good home, and im understand how government works (kind of, still learing). im not into socialistic reforms like obamacare, and how corrupt the government is right now. i wish that we could change that, wipeout all tax cuts(mostly for the poor and super rich) where are the tax cuts for the middle class huh?, and get everything running smoothly again.
@paladain55 - You're so indoctrinated you're actually stupid. My problem is a dipshit, know-nothing white bread like you wants this diminutive Socialist crank for President when he hate discriminated against whites his entire life. Go ahead kid. Do a search on:
robert reich white male construction workers
See what you get. Robert Reich knows less about economics than the average 4 year old. He was wrong about Taiwain and Hong Kong. He was wrong about the Housing Market. He's always wrong.
@thomaserossi everybody may be two faced assholes, but..... but, he has a point on some of his topics. im new to politics so go easy... his 5 point video has truth to it though, you have to admit. btw of what ethnicity are you? sounds like you have a deep hatred for caucasion males....
Don't bother. He accuses you of indoctrination, but his YouTube page is littered with references to right wing crap and islamophobia.
Reich's comments about "white male construction workers" were meant to stress that stimulus funds be applied towards the greater demographic spectrum, building a stronger middle class. The right wing automatically jumped on the bandwagon to promote the ludicrous concept of whites being the real victims of racism, while calling him Jewish slurs.
@thomaserossi Reich isn't racist -- he pointed out a problem, which is, to quote him, " . . . if construction jobs go mainly to white males who already dominate the construction trades, many people who need jobs the most — women, minorities, and the poor and long-term unemployed — will be shut out." He then said, "In addition, advantage should be taken of buildings trades apprenticeships — wich must be fully available to women and minorities."
@thomaserossi Also, Reich has written books on economics, worked in the Clinton administration when the economy was climbing, and teaches as a professor of economics. Me thinks he knows around 100x more on the subject then you'll ever learn.
@thomaserossi You weren't capable of parsing Reich's statement nor were you able to construct a perceptive response to anyone else, so I didn't expect much back from you. My expectation was cerainly fulfilled.
And I am sure corporate GOP fellatio is your specialty, aka "The Paul Ryan budget."
had we voted for this man, America would not be spilling the blood of our children waging unjust wars of empire abroad and leaving them with a 15 trillion dollar debt (and counting), which they will be paying for the rest of their lives.
Ralph Nader is true American patriot
Darth Cheney and the Bush crime family are corrupt war criminals
and now we've got Obama slaughtering innocents with hellfire missiles launched from UAVs 7000 miles away
Martin Luther King, Jr said, "A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death"
America's blood and treasure are being wasted defending the greedy interests of the rich and powerful oligarchs who send our children into battle to kill & die for empire. while our kids die and innocents are slaughtered by the thousands, the rich plunder & profit. that is the hideous nature of so-called 'modern warfare'.
"only after the last tree is cut down, the last of the water poisoned, the last animal destroyed, only then will you realize... you cannot eat money" ~ Cree Indian prophecy
@techcafe - Many people are spiritually dead and morally bankrupt these days, perhaps clear to the point of fitting the 80/20 rule. Money has become their true God. Reich is an optimist. He sees how the system should work. Unfortunately, there are too many lost souls at this point, and we probably will have to go through the Great Collapse before we can build a fair and just system out of this one's ashes.
@CmdrGendoIkari - i fear you are right. i know it's coming, and it makes me sick. we could have avoided all this, but we stupid humans keep repeating the same mistakes. history, it seems, teaches us nothing.
@techcafe - The few who do learn from history always fail at getting the rest of us to avoid repeating it, no matter how hard they try. As much of a cliche as this saying has become; You really can't fix stupid. The best we can hope for in the inevitable WWIII that will be triggered by the Great Collapse is that all of the morons have killed each other off.
@CmdrGendoIkari - as the saying goes, 'bombing for peace' is like 'fucking for virginity'... and the bloodthirsty war-mongers and profiteers already know this. these psychopaths who profit from war know that violence always begets more of the same, endless cycles of violence and killing... and more profit for the war machine.
"Of all the enemies to public liberty... WAR is the most to be dreaded because it comprises and develops the germ of every other." ~ James Madison
To put it another way; I listen to Reich speak a lot on CNBC and MSNBC. I believe this guy has a better comprehension of the Socioeconomic Big Picture, and all of the intricacies within it, than pretty much anyone else alive. Reich is a deeply insightful genius, but he's also very good at spelling it out in simple enough terms that most folks can understand it, just as he does in this video. He's also pretty good at drawing.
@Vicioussama How is he the worst president ever. Yeah he was a pretty bad president because he did not cut spending, he rose taxes(after cutting some), he raised the debt ceiling 18 times, he did not eliminate any fed. depts., he had a horrible foreign policy, even Clinton was more fiscally conservative then Reagan, and Clinton reformed welfare as well. Bad president, yes. Worst president, no.
@ADRIANC92ER Reagan was easily our worst. His economic policies are still screwing us over to this day. His military spending was ridiculous. He didn't do shit that was good.. he made our prison system worse (it used to be the best in the world, lower population, more about reform instead of incarceration), he is the reason most homeless people are mentally ill cause he got rid of more mental health institutes, etc. He was easily our worst.
@Salvysahagun I wasn't alive then :P but from reading history, 70s sucked due to other reasons. Generally things out of some of the President's hands. Carter and Ford didn't seem so bad. Good? Not really. Bad? Nah.
@Salvysahagun Nixon taking us off the gold standard was... interesting... it did do one good thing, it really made our dollar strong. You might believe it, but because we took it off the gold standard and we became the ONLY way oil was bought (with US dollars) then the rest of the world bought US dollars from us, increasing our money's value and our economic strength. So it wasn't as bad as people claim, other aspects that happened made it bad though.
Do you not realize that inflation is nothing more than a Tax you don't vote for?
What would cost $1 in 1969 would cost to $6 today!
Thats why Social Security is not enough for senior citizens realize that the American Golden age did not end when Reagan Cut taxes it ended when Nixon took away the Gold standard
@Salvysahagun in actuality, social security was set up to be gained at age of 60 when the average life span was 55. The government didn't have the foresight to see that the average age was likely to increase :\ that's more its problem.
And American's Golden Age ended more along the vietnam war as the military industry increased. In the 70s it got worse, but it didn't really start getting bad until after Nixon as more selfish baby boomer assholes got into power and gave corporate welfare.
You need to shut up if you think is boost to the Economy.
Gerald Ford was told after his inaugration by all of his officials and media reps that the American Economy was in the worse economic state the great depression. And it never really recoverd.
@Salvysahagun what's up your ass? I was saying the vietnam war was about where spending started getting more and more outta hand and the golden age after WWII began ending. LBJ in part really started increasing the deficits more than any before (though he did do some good like passing the civil rights act and shit).
I never said war promotes economic growth. Though, depends on the war. In truth WWII did, but that's because it created new factories and jobs that were later used for new tech.
@Salvysahagun From what I've read WW2 did bring us out of the depression because people were getting jobs. Hell, after WW2 cause of the massive amount of manufacturing we did during the war people on average had something no one in the past did before, that being disposable income.
@Salvysahagun Yes and? That doesn't mean that it works now or all the time. Ffs how low do taxes have to go for the rich until it'll be fixed? Taxes are lower than they've been for the rich in what.. 50 or more years. That's interesting to watch/listen to, but the argument of "more tax cuts" needs to go... it's pushing more taxes on the poor. Hell, look at fox news now, they are spouting "why aren't the poor doing their fair share" and trying to RAISE taxes on the poor... see class warfare yet?
@Salvysahagun you realize how many Americans make under 30,000 a year? Hell, do you even know the average income of the US Citizen population? Now, do you know the costs of living, and I mean purely living with things that are necessities, in the US? There's a vast problem of income and it's because the rich are causing a class warfare against the poor. Hell, income for the rich has gone up 298% since 1970s (after inflation), and the rest? Basically no change (like 2-5%). Ya... that's bad.
@Salvysahagun Those 47%? Most of them (not all because, yes, there are always those cheating the system) can't even AFFORD to pay taxes let alone the ability to live. Not in the US in our society. And they want to increase taxes and make them pay instead of closing loopholes on the rich or the corporations? Do you not see how fucking retarded that is? The very same corporations who intentionally fuck the country or move shit outside the country for their own greed when they don't need to?
You realize that if you make under $15 k. you get reimbursed?
During the 1970s we had 70% taxes on the rich, and it was worse than both 1980s, 1990s. Taxes don't garuntee growth.
Their is NO SUCH THING as THE RICH. the top 2% today are TOTALLY differenet group of people today than 30 years ago. 2/3 of the forbes 400 are Self made. and If you compare the 1920 to the 2010 list. You'd find less than 5% of the same family memebrs
@Salvysahagun Reimbursed for what? Ya because they know no one can live making so little money here.
And in the 1970s we had problems with depression due to politics in the middle east causing mass increase in oil prices. The arabs were pissed at some things the US government were doing and boycotted selling to the US for awhile. That lead to a great deal of economic problems.
And you're wrong.. the top 400 families have been the top since before the revolutionary war. For the most part.
1.) the dollar was and still is the reserve currency of the world and was on a gold standard so it couldn't be heavily printed. With the rest of the world beggining to demmand oil thier was some what of a dollar shortage. Thats what caused the 70s?
2.) did you even watch the video. Professor Horwitz clearly debunked that myth. Rich get richer stat doesn't take into account income mobility,.
3.) John Rockefeller was once worth almost a trillion adjusted to inflation. His great grandson and current heir is worth less than $4 billion.
4.)"Two-thirds of the members of the Forbes 400 have fortunes that are entirely self-made, while 19% of the group inherited their entire fortunes." MSN Money
5.)If you make under $15k the government will send you $5k
Please wake up and look at the real world. Micheal Moore and Robert Reich have done a fantastic job of brainwashing you!
@Salvysahagun They have inherited their wealth over and over again. I'm glad you keep linking videos made by people who make points that there are no "rich" or whatnot because they have a steak in it... derp.
@Vicioussama Yes his Economics policies were horrible, he wanted to stimulate the economy, he should have let the free market alone. Yes military spending was alot, like i said horrible foreign policy. Yes i think our prison system is also horrible even under Obama just like Bush, and Clinton, they should legalize all drugs and most of those prison problems would get solved. Why should mentally ill people be dealt with at the federal level. Let communities take care of them, let churches.
@ADRIANC92ER Nixon started the bullshit war on drugs that put so many in prison :\ Reagan, however, ended the rehabilitation our prisons were known for that made reoccurring criminals more likely. And why should the government let mentally ill people wander the streets being a danger to the people? Seriously...
JUST STOP PAYING TAXES!!!! I stopped paying income tax two years ago, by simply filing exempt and all I pay now is medicare and SSI. Our tax payer dollars funds everything the government does. We rank #1 in defense spending, in 2011 we spent over 741 TRILLION dollars that's more than the next 15 countries COMBINED!! The only way to stop this madness is if we all band together and stop paying our damn taxes. We can't count on the president or politicians to change things for us.
Roycemclain1 1 day ago
Robert is Reich.
Tippersnore 2 weeks ago
Throw them all out
spat846 2 weeks ago
Two comments below mine, "why didn't he suggest this shit in '93 as labor sec.", is almost exactly what popped in to my head when I saw a video titled "Robert Reich-Military-Industrial Congressional Complex". Indeed, who the fuck is Reich to "speak out" against the political influence of corporations that sell war? Rather hypocritical of him considering the eerily similar character of what his financiers are selling and how they (and he) go about getting their corporate needs met.
AdamRainStopper 1 month ago
"Beware the Military Industrial Complex" Eisenhower said it best 60 some years ago. Now it's happened.
eyeh8dog 2 months ago
CORRUPT AS HELL USA SHAME..!!
TheAnonymouse01 2 months ago
WHY DIDN'T HE SUGGEST THIS SHIT IN 1993 WHEN HE WAS LABOR SECRETARY. THANKS A LOT FOR SPEAKING OUT NOW, I GUESS BETTER LATE THAN NEVER FOR SELL-OUTS LIKE YOURSELF.
sepkloss 3 months ago 3
This guy's a bad actor. He workd 4 Ford and Carter and was LABOR SECRETARY in the Clinton Administration. Do your research.This guy stood idly by when Clinton signed NAFTA in '93... the trade agreement that eviscerated what was left of your manufacturing sector and sent millions of jobs everywhere but America.
He might say all the right things and make you feel good, but he's a fraudster thru and thru just trying to cash in on the crisis...chek out the library of books hes published for you.
sepkloss 3 months ago
@sepkloss Oh, he was in the government? That makes him a fraud?! He was in the clinton administration? That means he's responsible for NAFTA?! That's nonsense, which is used to make assertions about his inner motivations that you can't prove and have no way of even knowing. You're saying he's a fraud because you don't like what he's saying, and what he's saying is that corporations should not be able to use your tax dollars to subvert our democracy.
n8glenn 3 months ago
Comment removed
sepkloss 3 months ago
Comment removed
sepkloss 3 months ago
Comment removed
sepkloss 3 months ago
Comment removed
sepkloss 3 months ago
Comment removed
sepkloss 3 months ago
Comment removed
sepkloss 3 months ago
@n8glenn ..Robert Reich does not have principles, he is not a leader.
He chose to work in concert with people who, when making decisions, did not have the interest of the majority in mind, only themselves, their friends, their circle. These men were short-term thinkers, opportunists, salesman. And Reich is the same, else he would have left the circle a long time ago.
sepkloss 3 months ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@n8glenn ... it doesn't matter because though you would be shunned by the political establishment and could not return to govt, you'd get a book contract and have the chance to further outline your vision, reach more people, then you'd become a college professor...and spend your days teaching the younger generation how to stand up for principles, how to live with integrity, and how to take action and speak out when your government is not acting in the interest of the majority,
how to Lead.
sepkloss 3 months ago
@n8glenn...Well, if you had principles and convictions, likely, you might resign your position in protest, your historic resignation would become a media sensation, grant you an automatic spotlight and national stage from which to voice your opposition and express your feelings to your unaware countrymen. Other officials, maybe a senator, perhaps a congressman or two might follow your lead...your thoughts, your concerns, your knowledge might strike a movement outside of dc, might resonate...
sepkloss 3 months ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@n8glenn ...And you knew, better than anyone else could understand or foresee, that this outcome was inevitable, but none of your colleagues were saying anything or wanted to take a stand or wanted to hear your message, and you felt helpless to stop it from being signed, had no control, couldnt get the president's ear...what would you do? To save your countrymen? What could you do?
sepkloss 3 months ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@n8glenn Glenn, think about it this way, if you were a high level govt. official, say a cabinet member, and legislation that you didn't believe in- that signified and would mean unprecedented and lasting harm to your nation- made it to the president's desk and he was about to sign it, forever changing the nation and putting it firmly on a course leading to its eventual economic destruction...
sepkloss 3 months ago
Our men and women in the armed forces are not fighting for America or freedom or justice or any other altruistic ideal. They fight for Haliburton, for GE, for Raetheon, for General Dynamics and a hundred other military contractors.
It is sad, but true.
judoyodan 4 months ago
If we cut our military in HALF, it would still be way too big.
judoyodan 4 months ago
@judoyodan dumbest comment of the day
PatriotWatchUSA 3 months ago
@PatriotWatchUSA, and your mother is the biggest whore on the block.
judoyodan 3 months ago
Racist Robert Reich, the Marxist imbecile, said he didn't want jobs going to skilled white construction workers. Yes, Racist Robert, the Marxist Moran, would rather have the construction jobs go to unskilled non-whites...way to ensure that your infrastructure collapses due to failure, Racist Robert the idiot shyster.
biozamadotcom 4 months ago
This guy is an idiot. What he is recommending is controlling how people spend their own money. Its like saying that their should be a limit on how much any government employee can contribute to a political party because their paycheck comes from government tax dollars. He just hates these companies because of what they represent to liberals which does not make sense because these companies create the weapons that allow us to sleep peacefully at night without threat of foreign invasion.
seanspartan7 4 months ago
Surely you can disagree with him without calling him an idiot. I don't think he hates the companies. He does not like the fact that as corporations that do business with the Federal Government they can have any influence at all on who runs that government. Don't buy into the "be afraid, be very afraid" business. Americans have been hoodwinked by that for years. Nobody is saying do away with the military but the only difference between the men and the boys is the price of the toys.
gocar1962 4 months ago
Then we could have a small elite council of say, 15 people, and myself as the head and those are the only people that really matter. The US armed forces then would be our private army and we would start a global conflict, safe in our bunkers, we would not be the ones who would die, and then emerge the victor. That is a great plan. Oh, and I would have an army of military robots built and myself turned into a quasi-immortal virtual AI who can embody various android bodies /w full sensory ability
Foreshadow44 4 months ago
Here's what I would do if I were one of these 1% and got those contracts. I would raise a secret private army and then release a virus which my labs created with US funded finance, and take over the CDC that has the power to declare martial law regardless of any president or congressional order. I would then use that "crisis" to eliminate my rivals and seize the government. Then change the laws so I am not president for life but something like the head of Iran, some political guru above the law
Foreshadow44 4 months ago
So where is this petition?
undeadpresident 4 months ago
Why is this guy not part of the Obama administration yet?
Chucktanium 4 months ago
All corporations should be banned from taking part in politics in any way. Political voice should be reserved for the people alone. Corporations have no national loyalty. They go where the money is. Allowing them to influence government is to allow criminals to write the laws such that their actions are no longer illegal...merely wrong.
sgillhoolley 4 months ago 31
@sgillhoolley This, this, this. A thousand times, this. History has repeatedly shown that allowing a corporation the same rights as a private citizen is nonsensical. A corporation has no loyalty to a state and no loyalty to it's people. The only reason the Rich continue to keep their interests in specific areas is because those areas are where they can easily make a quick buck and buy political power with it, influencing major political parties in a manner that benefits them.
451harri 4 months ago
@sgillhoolley Very well said.
XoXitsSaruhh 4 months ago
Comment removed
PatriotWatchUSA 3 months ago
So true you are all being ripped off
MrSwift05 4 months ago
Robert Reich = Racist!
he hates whites.
biozamadotcom 4 months ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@biozamadotcom He's white himself asshole !
Quierotortilla 4 months ago
Racist Robert Reich said he did not want WHITES to get construction jobs.
Well, now you know Democrat policy!!
biozamadotcom 4 months ago
@biozamadotcom It's possible he said that as a response to deepening socioeconomic divides between races, but for now let's assume the worst and regard his statement as an expression of racist beliefs.
So if it IS an expression of racism, how does it invalidate what he's saying here?
451harri 4 months ago
In Eisenhower"s original speech where he said we must watch out for the military industrial complex. He actually had in the speech, the military, industrial, congressional complex. He struck the congressional part out of the final speech.
But Robert , the congressional part of the statement is not new.
bbtesla 4 months ago
I'm told that Eisenhower called it the "military-industrial-congressional complex" in all the early drafts of the speech. He removed the word "congressional" from the final draft for some reason.
RCHairbrush 5 months ago
@RCHairbrush
It's slander if it's not true. I can't prove that it is true, but neither has the accusation been proven false. But he is supposed to be a journalist, and they're nothing without a reputation for integrity. Any appearance that they can be bought is damaging.
RCHairbrush 5 months ago
Midget
Ipostle 5 months ago
This has been flagged as spam show
Rob Reich is the ONLY one of the entire clinton administration that i truly like. the man is a true american patriot and hero, taking precious moments from his life to make a better life for all of us.
commieplot 5 months ago
Rob Reich is the ONLY one of the entire clinton administration that i truly like. the man is a true american patriot and hero, taking precious moments from his life to make a better life for all of us.
commieplot 5 months ago
@commieplot lol this was funny. Are you still high?
PatriotWatchUSA 3 months ago
LOL I work for # 9 BAE systems.... Democracy is for people not corporations "We the people" remember
Mrmitternacht1987 5 months ago
FOX nation viewers are the most misinformed viewers in the USA--proven repeatedly in university studies. Look it up, dude.
queenjaneaproximate 6 months ago 45
@queenjaneaproximate couple of thing first Fox is number 1 in the ratings. Second why is Fox the only tv news reports on the ATF scandal, Solyndra, banks getting bonuses from the Obama stimulus plan and the truth on the Egypt and Libya revolts and who is actually in involved. I like to know that is can you answer that for me?
lovejen01 4 months ago
@lovejen01, FOW viewers have been shown repeatedly to be the most ignorant and worst informed of any of the networks.
That "should" be your cue to find another source.
judoyodan 4 months ago
@judoyodan i think you are mad Fox and don't know the reason why, also it seems to go by what there competitions says. You still did not answer my question.
lovejen01 3 months ago
@lovejen01 the ratings are for cable and only 20% of population have cable so the other 80% of population aren't even included in the alleged ratings. There is high rate of misinformation among FOX viewers and that's been shown repeatedly. Look it up on the net, dude.
queenjaneaproximate 3 months ago
@queenjaneaproximate 1st wrong, more than 20% has cable were you getting these number well maybe from MSNBC and CNN which have more misinformation. The question still is why is Fox only talking about what has been mention before and the others don't. CBS did for couple of weeks then dropped the story and have talked about it since. Little advice wake up.
lovejen01 3 months ago
@queenjaneaproximate 20% have cable. SERIOUSLY only progressive fools would make up such lies
PatriotWatchUSA 3 months ago
Comment removed
PatriotWatchUSA 3 months ago
@queenjaneaproximate Why not give us the link? Oh thats right you are progressive and lies are whats important
PatriotWatchUSA 3 months ago
i saw on youtube, the top 5 defense contractos spent "500 million lobby money a year along."
That is how they screwed us all, so many fxxx wars, 16 wars, 242 millitary conflicts, multi million died
we r z sheeple don't we???
energyalt56 6 months ago
God Bless You! We need more people like you. Your are very valuable because of your inside knowledge of DC Politics. Here are a couple of YouTube links that have to do with what you say. They are of poor quality because they are old but the message is very powerful and easily understood by the masses. (1) The War Racket (Documentary) youtube.com/watch?v=2Zb_zLaWpB8 and (2) The Constitution (Animated Cartoon) youtube.com/watch?v=-CjrZNi49bE
VolodiaTheElder 6 months ago
Reich is correct, but you could say the same thing about Public Sector Unions. Defense Contractors and Public Sector Unions are both economic “rent-seekers.” They are both paid to do work for the government, and then they reinvest the money they earn into lobbying for more government work. They both do this at the expensive of tax payers. The solution is to eliminate special interest groups that support both Republicans and Democrats. –Tijo, Economics major.
TijoKJose 6 months ago
@TijoKJose You nailed it 100%. I repeat the 2 links I recently discovered. They are good because they are for The Masses (i.e. 'The Poor and The Desperate') not 'The Middle Class' (i.e. what most politicians cater to). These 2 videos are of poor quality because they are old. However, the message is very powerful and easily understood by The Masses. (1) The War Racket (Documentary) youtube.com/watch?v=2Zb_zLaWpB8 and (2) The Constitution (Animated Cartoon) youtube.com/watch?v=-CjrZNi49bE
VolodiaTheElder 6 months ago
Comment removed
shawmithell 6 months ago
Brilliant. No one could say it better.
bernthepolarghost 7 months ago
Comment removed
ADRIANC92ER 7 months ago
60% of the budget is Federal Budget.
As it should be.
across the board budget in everything.
Salvysahagun 7 months ago
@Salvysahagun
60% of the Federal Budget is Military ever since this nation was founded
Salvysahagun 7 months ago
This guy needs to burn in hell. He white and old. He should shut his mouth before I fuck his wife and his daughter at the same time whilst his brother watches and jerks off. Oprah for President.
TheDillionMurphy 7 months ago
This guy and Ron Paul are the two smartest politicians that I've seen through these years. Reich actually KNOWS about economics and Paul actually WANTS to restore America. If these two were presidential candidates, I'd vote for both of them. We need these people, and we need them NOW.
goodcommentguy 7 months ago
@goodcommentguy They're not even remotely similar. Watch Reich's video on the economy. Reich is more or less Keynesian and supports government spending aimed at low to middle income Americans as a stimulus during economic downturns (this has been effective in practice). Ron Paul is a libertarian, and assumes that the economy will magically be great if you mostly remove government from the equation (this is really dumb). The only thing they agree on is the bloated MIC.
BenkaiDebussy 7 months ago
@BenkaiDebussy How is that dumb? i actually find it dumb to think that government can help more people than a free market can. Look at Bush, did he help anyone? Yet he got reelected. How can government help people when people that vote for politicians mostly do it based on what they want their society to look like, and many of those people see society through the lens of their religion. They will not want to vote for a politician who gives people the right to do things they would not approve of
ADRIANC92ER 7 months ago
Great information - particularly that the 10 largest government contractors are military corporations. A good but tepid proposal to ban them from lobbying activities. Obviously we should go much further and cut military spending DEEPLY. Eisenhower also said, "We need an adequate defense. But every dollar spent above adequacy has a long term weakening effect on our nation and its people."
Notecrusher 8 months ago
I´m highly suspicious of a jew who has advised Carter, Clinton and now Obama, telling me how to eliminate jewish influence in politics. He was appointed a member of Obama's economic transition advisory board, so why does he have to make a video telling us what should be done? Why isn´t he telling the Kenyan? Besides, WTF does he care about the bleeding American taxpayer.
His whole speel reeks of BULLSHIT and is designed to dispel the, "jews control", image. We ain´t falling for it Bob.
stickitupyapipe 8 months ago
@stickitupyapipe hahaha... you're funny, cause you're paranoid and instinctively close your mind to good advice.
Don't worry though, bro. Obama's under the lobby thumb now. He's not Kenyan, his corporate. So this jewish advice is as good as ever.
ntnima 7 months ago
Is that you George Soros?
theloztone 8 months ago
Let's stop calling military spending "Defense Spending." When was the last time we used our military for "Defense"? The majority of military action is aggressive action overseas that has nothing to do with defending the country. Libya, Iraq, Vietnam, etc. This is not defense
Badgers427 8 months ago
yeah...like the reference to Eisenhower's warning...I see that in the documentary movie "Why figth" or something else.
Arturopolisaeael 8 months ago
where does this money go reich? to build planes, arms, weapons - new technology that saves lives and makes america powerful?
you spend quite a lot of time discussing the behaviors of private companies, yet offer no criticism of the unnecessary and excessive spending of THE GOVERNMENT.
tally up all these expenses and it is still a fraction of the deficit. take all the money from the super rich and it will only cover 10% of our 10 trillion national debt.
what else do we do?
ImNeilPatrickHarris 8 months ago
thanks for trying to demystify .... you do it well.... i hope your efforts wake folks up !!! seablessings
blissoflight 8 months ago
Fire lockheed martin for a year and the deficit problem will be solve...any one think of that?
lgreenl 8 months ago
Disban the Army.
problem solved.
Jefferson said it himself..
To summon an army and maintain a navy.
You don't need troops to defend your country!
Salvysahagun 8 months ago
Funny how this seems so obvious. However, if we identify public teachers unions as "government contractors", which they are (100% funded by taxpayers), the opinion of the issue changes. If this concept should be implemented, watch them squirm and dance and FIGHT on the definition of "government contractors". If you cant follow the chain, here you go... Taxpayers>teachers>union dues>union lobby groups.
tinger2000 8 months ago
@tinger2000 Schools are public institutions, not private; they are accountable.
Last time an education lobby siphoned money from it's government funding (explicitly for schooling) there was a huge scandal. These private defense companies & contractors don't have any restrictions on their government funding, so they legally can and do use that money to lobby for more funding.
HollowFlight 8 months ago
Reich the Racist
"Make sure jobs don't go to skilled White construction workers"
Now these workers know why they are unemployed
this guy
biozamadotcom 8 months ago
Why should you and I, the American taxpayers, pay government employee unions to lobby and give away money to politicians who will vote for even more govt employee benefits? Same reason we shouldn't give money to Boeing.
hallavast 8 months ago
@hallavast What are you talking about? State employees are teachers, fire fighters, cops and garbage men. THEY ADD VALUE TO OUR SYSTEM. Please explain to me how bomb makers add value to any society, they dont educate anyone, they dont defend anyone (I can say that because they also sell their weapons to other countries!). You are clearly a rightwinger with little education or commonsense...SMH...
newave123456 8 months ago
@newave123456 Thanks for the personal attack. It's not about value to "our system". It's about whether or not the taxpayer is FORCED to pay them. Privately employed teachers, fire fighters, security and sanitation workers also have value. It's not about getting rid of these people, its about the way the UNIONS that represent them do not have my interests at heart, and that I'm forced to pay them anyway. One needs to recognize the gun in the room when it comes to taxes.
hallavast 8 months ago
You folks would do well to transcend the false left -right paradigm that is so neatly constructed for you. The real polemic is between centralization and de-centralization, between compulsion and volunteerism, between collectivism and individualism, between government mandates and natural rights.
weavermama 8 months ago
could this video be posted without the Military Industrial Congressional Complex -> DARPA -> internet
die101 8 months ago
@die101 The DARPA project that resulted in the origins of the internet was a research project for communications during wartime, not development for new ways to blow up other countries. The internet as we have it today has VERY little to do with the original DARPA project, and is a result of privatization and commercial interest, not government interest.
zionpc1 8 months ago
Robert Reich for President!
splaaaack 8 months ago 17
@splaaaack - Robert Reich for Labor Secretary!
Seriously. The man is brilliant at what he does and his area of expertise. I don't want him shaking hands and asking for money.
I want him to be the voice of reason in the ear of the President.
morpheusxnyc 5 months ago
"mulling an executive order" ROTFLMFAO....hehehhehehe....seriously....research board of the council on global affairs....you think we have a president.....hahahahahah that's rich.
Cashify 8 months ago
If Robert is such a genius, why did I laugh out loud when he said 'what the president should not wait to do' bwahahahahahaha!!!! Who did Michelle Obama sit elbow to elbow with on the board of directors of the Chicago Council on Global Affairs with??? Before "hubby" was even a Senator?? WHO?? Executives from the top Military Industrial Corporations. Wake up Sheep. Democracy is a sham and elections are a sharade. Withdraw all support from this outlaw government and its coporate puppets.
Cashify 8 months ago
If you look at Eisenhower's notes of that speech, you will see that he crossed out the word "congressional" because that was way too hot / controversial. Time has shown us that Eisenhower was way beyond right... and he was a General!!!
prodkey 8 months ago 2
Robert is awesome, he's genius! I love his credibility.
Stingerbillion 8 months ago
I love this guy.
Duf67 8 months ago
We are powerless now people. The people in government are for sale and only the super rich can afford their services. That's why tax breaks for the rich continue to be signed into law even though it makes NO sense at all considering the state of the economy. That's why corporations continue to grow more powerful and organized labor continues to be marginalized. There is no hope for the poor and middle class of this country. We are all just going to scrape by on whatever we can until we die.
TheBrindleBoxer 8 months ago
Let's say that these companies are banned from political activity. Does anybody operate under the belief that they will just sit there and take it? All they have to do is set up a political action committee or something like it with a different name to represent the industry as opposed to a specific company.
This also means that you have an industry that is being targeted by a particular politician. By keeping them out of politics they may gain more influence and can become a sympathy case.
Mrpartsunknown 8 months ago
@Mrpartsunknown , The problem is our Neo-Fascist Corporate dominated Supreme Court (thanks to Bush)
has given corporations individual rights, as Reich eluded to. That is a perversion of the constitution. You also have to add in that many of these, high tech systems, are systems the pentagon does not want. These people are self serving egotists not patriots. Gates claimed are problems in Afghanistan are because we left in the 80's, I say our problems are because we got involved, period.
zaurakdigis 8 months ago
WW2 spending on arms got the U.S economy out of the great depression, it seems like keynes never existed. U.S spending as percentage of GDP is just 4 percent.
JulianThePhilosopher 8 months ago
Whilst Reich/Clinton balanced the FedBudge (boo-yah), they (jews) starved hundreds o' thousands of little Iraqi children to death. We are still MORALLY BANKRUPT. ---No way out America, you are skrewed.
profnasty 8 months ago
Reich is a racist.
reallysecretusername 8 months ago
@reallysecretusername No he isn't. Read what he actually said; don't listen to someone such as Michelle Malkin who will twist his words.
Baculus 8 months ago
wow. im 15 and i love listening to this guy. he should definetly run for president. aint nobody got dirt on him. keep speaking the truth man!!!!!!!!!!
paladain55 8 months ago
@paladain55 - If you're the future of America then you're the next in a long line of Goose-stepping fascists. You're so indoctrinated you're going to march the world into a thousand years of darkness. The youth Nazis like you will continue to hate America, whites, private property, and the rich to elect another fascist into office. If that happens you'll be the next marched off to the gas chambers by your political messiahs because you're too stupid from indoctrination to look in a mirror.
thomaserossi 8 months ago
@thomaserossi whats your problem??? i agree with this guy do you understand? im american. im white. ive grown up in a good home, and im understand how government works (kind of, still learing). im not into socialistic reforms like obamacare, and how corrupt the government is right now. i wish that we could change that, wipeout all tax cuts(mostly for the poor and super rich) where are the tax cuts for the middle class huh?, and get everything running smoothly again.
paladain55 8 months ago
@paladain55 - You're so indoctrinated you're actually stupid. My problem is a dipshit, know-nothing white bread like you wants this diminutive Socialist crank for President when he hate discriminated against whites his entire life. Go ahead kid. Do a search on:
robert reich white male construction workers
See what you get. Robert Reich knows less about economics than the average 4 year old. He was wrong about Taiwain and Hong Kong. He was wrong about the Housing Market. He's always wrong.
thomaserossi 8 months ago
Comment removed
paladain55 8 months ago
@thomaserossi everybody may be two faced assholes, but..... but, he has a point on some of his topics. im new to politics so go easy... his 5 point video has truth to it though, you have to admit. btw of what ethnicity are you? sounds like you have a deep hatred for caucasion males....
paladain55 8 months ago
@paladain55
Don't bother. He accuses you of indoctrination, but his YouTube page is littered with references to right wing crap and islamophobia.
Reich's comments about "white male construction workers" were meant to stress that stimulus funds be applied towards the greater demographic spectrum, building a stronger middle class. The right wing automatically jumped on the bandwagon to promote the ludicrous concept of whites being the real victims of racism, while calling him Jewish slurs.
plasterdbastard 8 months ago
@thomaserossi Reich isn't racist -- he pointed out a problem, which is, to quote him, " . . . if construction jobs go mainly to white males who already dominate the construction trades, many people who need jobs the most — women, minorities, and the poor and long-term unemployed — will be shut out." He then said, "In addition, advantage should be taken of buildings trades apprenticeships — wich must be fully available to women and minorities."
There ARE disparities in the workforce.
Baculus 8 months ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@Baculus - Suck! Suck! Suck!
thomaserossi 8 months ago
@thomaserossi Also, Reich has written books on economics, worked in the Clinton administration when the economy was climbing, and teaches as a professor of economics. Me thinks he knows around 100x more on the subject then you'll ever learn.
Baculus 8 months ago
@Baculus - Keep sucking that dick!
thomaserossi 8 months ago
@thomaserossi You weren't capable of parsing Reich's statement nor were you able to construct a perceptive response to anyone else, so I didn't expect much back from you. My expectation was cerainly fulfilled.
And I am sure corporate GOP fellatio is your specialty, aka "The Paul Ryan budget."
Baculus 8 months ago
He hates white construction workers
screw this guy
push him in a ditch
biozamadotcom 8 months ago
Ralph Nader rally in 2000
/watch?v=SC9LjBI73zk&hd=1
had we voted for this man, America would not be spilling the blood of our children waging unjust wars of empire abroad and leaving them with a 15 trillion dollar debt (and counting), which they will be paying for the rest of their lives.
Ralph Nader is true American patriot
Darth Cheney and the Bush crime family are corrupt war criminals
and now we've got Obama slaughtering innocents with hellfire missiles launched from UAVs 7000 miles away
techcafe 8 months ago
typical example of war profiteering
Iraq for Sale
/watch?v=0Zt9BZD7mlc&hd=1
techcafe 8 months ago
Lives in the Balance
by Jackson Browne
/watch?v=8szhQfJoL-s&hd=1
techcafe 8 months ago 2
Martin Luther King, Jr said, "A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death"
America's blood and treasure are being wasted defending the greedy interests of the rich and powerful oligarchs who send our children into battle to kill & die for empire. while our kids die and innocents are slaughtered by the thousands, the rich plunder & profit. that is the hideous nature of so-called 'modern warfare'.
techcafe 8 months ago 3
if you ask me, i think the human spirit died a long time ago.
we have become spiritually dead and morally bankrupt.
enslaved to a hideously corrupt system of predatory capitalism
techcafe 8 months ago 3
"only after the last tree is cut down, the last of the water poisoned, the last animal destroyed, only then will you realize... you cannot eat money" ~ Cree Indian prophecy
techcafe 8 months ago 3
@techcafe - Many people are spiritually dead and morally bankrupt these days, perhaps clear to the point of fitting the 80/20 rule. Money has become their true God. Reich is an optimist. He sees how the system should work. Unfortunately, there are too many lost souls at this point, and we probably will have to go through the Great Collapse before we can build a fair and just system out of this one's ashes.
CmdrGendoIkari 8 months ago 3
@CmdrGendoIkari - i fear you are right. i know it's coming, and it makes me sick. we could have avoided all this, but we stupid humans keep repeating the same mistakes. history, it seems, teaches us nothing.
techcafe 8 months ago 3
@techcafe - The few who do learn from history always fail at getting the rest of us to avoid repeating it, no matter how hard they try. As much of a cliche as this saying has become; You really can't fix stupid. The best we can hope for in the inevitable WWIII that will be triggered by the Great Collapse is that all of the morons have killed each other off.
CmdrGendoIkari 8 months ago 3
@CmdrGendoIkari - as the saying goes, 'bombing for peace' is like 'fucking for virginity'... and the bloodthirsty war-mongers and profiteers already know this. these psychopaths who profit from war know that violence always begets more of the same, endless cycles of violence and killing... and more profit for the war machine.
"Of all the enemies to public liberty... WAR is the most to be dreaded because it comprises and develops the germ of every other." ~ James Madison
techcafe 8 months ago 3
@CmdrGendoIkari - on a more uplifting note, i look forward to a re-awakening of our inner humanity... should we live to see it that is.
EMPATHY is a good place to start, i think.
techcafe 8 months ago 3
@techcafe - I think that folks like you and I will make it through, though it won't be easy by any means.
CmdrGendoIkari 8 months ago
To put it another way; I listen to Reich speak a lot on CNBC and MSNBC. I believe this guy has a better comprehension of the Socioeconomic Big Picture, and all of the intricacies within it, than pretty much anyone else alive. Reich is a deeply insightful genius, but he's also very good at spelling it out in simple enough terms that most folks can understand it, just as he does in this video. He's also pretty good at drawing.
CmdrGendoIkari 8 months ago 2
warresisters. org/pages/2009_piechart-BW.pdf
techcafe 8 months ago 2
another great point by mr. Reich. I like the reference to Eisenhower's warning....It really has come to fruition, hasn't it? It's sad...
moreoreos123 8 months ago 25
@moreoreos123 You can thank Reagan for that. Worst president ever.
Vicioussama 7 months ago
@Vicioussama How is he the worst president ever. Yeah he was a pretty bad president because he did not cut spending, he rose taxes(after cutting some), he raised the debt ceiling 18 times, he did not eliminate any fed. depts., he had a horrible foreign policy, even Clinton was more fiscally conservative then Reagan, and Clinton reformed welfare as well. Bad president, yes. Worst president, no.
ADRIANC92ER 7 months ago
@ADRIANC92ER Reagan was easily our worst. His economic policies are still screwing us over to this day. His military spending was ridiculous. He didn't do shit that was good.. he made our prison system worse (it used to be the best in the world, lower population, more about reform instead of incarceration), he is the reason most homeless people are mentally ill cause he got rid of more mental health institutes, etc. He was easily our worst.
Vicioussama 7 months ago
@Vicioussama
You must not remember how bad the 70s were?
Salvysahagun 7 months ago
@Salvysahagun I wasn't alive then :P but from reading history, 70s sucked due to other reasons. Generally things out of some of the President's hands. Carter and Ford didn't seem so bad. Good? Not really. Bad? Nah.
Vicioussama 7 months ago
@Vicioussama
70s sucked because Nixon took us off the gold standard and inflation sky rocked as a result.
Nixon, Ford and Carter where all horrible incompetent presidents.
By that logic I could easily say 07 crashed for other reasons.
Such as just about all Democrats pushing for Fannie And Freddie subsidies and removal of any lending standards on government backed loans.
Bush actually tried to regulate freddie and fannie but the democratic congress turned it down.
Salvysahagun 7 months ago
@Salvysahagun Nixon taking us off the gold standard was... interesting... it did do one good thing, it really made our dollar strong. You might believe it, but because we took it off the gold standard and we became the ONLY way oil was bought (with US dollars) then the rest of the world bought US dollars from us, increasing our money's value and our economic strength. So it wasn't as bad as people claim, other aspects that happened made it bad though.
Vicioussama 7 months ago
@Vicioussama
You have no business discussing economics
Do you not realize that inflation is nothing more than a Tax you don't vote for?
What would cost $1 in 1969 would cost to $6 today!
Thats why Social Security is not enough for senior citizens realize that the American Golden age did not end when Reagan Cut taxes it ended when Nixon took away the Gold standard
Salvysahagun 7 months ago
@Salvysahagun in actuality, social security was set up to be gained at age of 60 when the average life span was 55. The government didn't have the foresight to see that the average age was likely to increase :\ that's more its problem.
And American's Golden Age ended more along the vietnam war as the military industry increased. In the 70s it got worse, but it didn't really start getting bad until after Nixon as more selfish baby boomer assholes got into power and gave corporate welfare.
Vicioussama 7 months ago
@Vicioussama
You need to shut up if you think is boost to the Economy.
Gerald Ford was told after his inaugration by all of his officials and media reps that the American Economy was in the worse economic state the great depression. And it never really recoverd.
Salvysahagun 7 months ago
@Vicioussama
War does not promote economic growth
Salvysahagun 7 months ago
@Salvysahagun what's up your ass? I was saying the vietnam war was about where spending started getting more and more outta hand and the golden age after WWII began ending. LBJ in part really started increasing the deficits more than any before (though he did do some good like passing the civil rights act and shit).
I never said war promotes economic growth. Though, depends on the war. In truth WWII did, but that's because it created new factories and jobs that were later used for new tech.
Vicioussama 7 months ago
@Vicioussama
WW2 did not help the economy.
a good quote to some it up
"If every worker was staffed in the army and fleet, we'd have full employment and nothing to eat"
People in America where STARVING. All resources where being sent over seas, none stayed here
Salvysahagun 7 months ago
@Salvysahagun From what I've read WW2 did bring us out of the depression because people were getting jobs. Hell, after WW2 cause of the massive amount of manufacturing we did during the war people on average had something no one in the past did before, that being disposable income.
Vicioussama 7 months ago
@Vicioussama
If you stayed in America you where living a life of pure Auesterity. Everything was rationed.
This is a pure case of the left rewriting history. it happens all the time
Here's a quick list
Depression of 1920 and its recovery - Erased by Liberals to make Warren Harding look like an awful president
WW2 cut short the depression - to make government spending good to the public. In reality their was no multipller consumption just shrank.
Vietnam- We were really winning.
Salvysahagun 7 months ago
@Salvysahagun And where's your evidence to back this up? Because atm that sounds like conspiracy theory crap with no substantial evidence.
But if you can provide sources I'll give em a read/watch/whatnot.
Vicioussama 7 months ago
@Vicioussama
OMG, My grandmother was alive in world war 2 and she said it was hell.
PHD Economist Russ Roberts began elaborating on this hiddin history of WW2 he even uses real footage from the war in his Keynes vs Hayek Rap battle
I've spoken with dozens of Veitnam vets who explained that the Veit Kong where starving and they had just about all the routes cut off
PHD Thomas Wood gives an excellent lecture on the hidden Depression of 1920. its on youtube
Salvysahagun 7 months ago
@Vicioussama
watch?v=czcUmnsprQI
Salvysahagun 6 months ago
@Salvysahagun Yes and? That doesn't mean that it works now or all the time. Ffs how low do taxes have to go for the rich until it'll be fixed? Taxes are lower than they've been for the rich in what.. 50 or more years. That's interesting to watch/listen to, but the argument of "more tax cuts" needs to go... it's pushing more taxes on the poor. Hell, look at fox news now, they are spouting "why aren't the poor doing their fair share" and trying to RAISE taxes on the poor... see class warfare yet?
Vicioussama 6 months ago
@Vicioussama
47% fo Americans did not file 1040s.
Warren Harding kept the effective tax rate the same but added more brackets. then downsized government.
Salvysahagun 6 months ago
@Salvysahagun you realize how many Americans make under 30,000 a year? Hell, do you even know the average income of the US Citizen population? Now, do you know the costs of living, and I mean purely living with things that are necessities, in the US? There's a vast problem of income and it's because the rich are causing a class warfare against the poor. Hell, income for the rich has gone up 298% since 1970s (after inflation), and the rest? Basically no change (like 2-5%). Ya... that's bad.
Vicioussama 6 months ago
@Salvysahagun Those 47%? Most of them (not all because, yes, there are always those cheating the system) can't even AFFORD to pay taxes let alone the ability to live. Not in the US in our society. And they want to increase taxes and make them pay instead of closing loopholes on the rich or the corporations? Do you not see how fucking retarded that is? The very same corporations who intentionally fuck the country or move shit outside the country for their own greed when they don't need to?
Vicioussama 6 months ago
@Vicioussama
You realize that if you make under $15 k. you get reimbursed?
During the 1970s we had 70% taxes on the rich, and it was worse than both 1980s, 1990s. Taxes don't garuntee growth.
Their is NO SUCH THING as THE RICH. the top 2% today are TOTALLY differenet group of people today than 30 years ago. 2/3 of the forbes 400 are Self made. and If you compare the 1920 to the 2010 list. You'd find less than 5% of the same family memebrs
Rich get richer debunked:
watch?v=vDhcqua3_W8
Salvysahagun 6 months ago
@Salvysahagun Reimbursed for what? Ya because they know no one can live making so little money here.
And in the 1970s we had problems with depression due to politics in the middle east causing mass increase in oil prices. The arabs were pissed at some things the US government were doing and boycotted selling to the US for awhile. That lead to a great deal of economic problems.
And you're wrong.. the top 400 families have been the top since before the revolutionary war. For the most part.
Vicioussama 6 months ago
@Vicioussama
What fantasty world are you living in?
1.) the dollar was and still is the reserve currency of the world and was on a gold standard so it couldn't be heavily printed. With the rest of the world beggining to demmand oil thier was some what of a dollar shortage. Thats what caused the 70s?
2.) did you even watch the video. Professor Horwitz clearly debunked that myth. Rich get richer stat doesn't take into account income mobility,.
Salvysahagun 6 months ago
@Vicioussama
3.) John Rockefeller was once worth almost a trillion adjusted to inflation. His great grandson and current heir is worth less than $4 billion.
4.)"Two-thirds of the members of the Forbes 400 have fortunes that are entirely self-made, while 19% of the group inherited their entire fortunes." MSN Money
5.)If you make under $15k the government will send you $5k
Please wake up and look at the real world. Micheal Moore and Robert Reich have done a fantastic job of brainwashing you!
Salvysahagun 6 months ago
@Salvysahagun And Fox News has done a fantastic job of brainwashing you.
Vicioussama 6 months ago
@Vicioussama
The only time I watch fox anything is John Stossel whom I followed from ABC.
Any more facts? nope? ok I win?
Salvysahagun 6 months ago
@Salvysahagun
Does it not bother you that Stossel has a reputation for being a
tremendous schill who'll say anything if you pay him enough to say it?
RCHairbrush 5 months ago
@RCHairbrush
Does it bother you that is nothing but slander from then America Left?
Salvysahagun 5 months ago
@Salvysahagun They have inherited their wealth over and over again. I'm glad you keep linking videos made by people who make points that there are no "rich" or whatnot because they have a steak in it... derp.
Vicioussama 6 months ago
@Vicioussama Yes his Economics policies were horrible, he wanted to stimulate the economy, he should have let the free market alone. Yes military spending was alot, like i said horrible foreign policy. Yes i think our prison system is also horrible even under Obama just like Bush, and Clinton, they should legalize all drugs and most of those prison problems would get solved. Why should mentally ill people be dealt with at the federal level. Let communities take care of them, let churches.
ADRIANC92ER 7 months ago
@ADRIANC92ER Nixon started the bullshit war on drugs that put so many in prison :\ Reagan, however, ended the rehabilitation our prisons were known for that made reoccurring criminals more likely. And why should the government let mentally ill people wander the streets being a danger to the people? Seriously...
Vicioussama 7 months ago