I'm not defending Kerry, but his remark was right on the money. A primary indication of a declining empire is the failure of its education system. In the last few years the number of Americans attending college has actually decreased as scholastic quality has declined in average high school grads. That's in direct relation with the vastly reduced availability of entry-level manufacturing jobs. It's also a well-known fact that military recruitment centers on disadvantaged metropolitan and rural high schools where work opportunities for our youth are extremely limited, most often to near-minimum wage service industry jobs without benefits. The highest paying job for most average US high school grads is now the volunteer military, with an excellent chance of being sent into the sick folly of Iraq to be shot at, not a circumstance for any nation to be proud of, and yet another example of the US drift into a two-tiered society of haves and have-nots facilitated by corrupt and self-serving leadership.

 

Maybe we should talk about religion instead.[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

 

Might as well as both religion and our current government are based on blind faith and we all (most) know the definition of faith, belief that does not rest on logical proof or material evidence.

 

Let's see now; to prove there is no such thing a biased media, I am supposed to go to the web page of a very liberal left wing career politician from very left wing state? Yeah, now I'm convinced, not.

How about this one from the Daily Reveiw: Joe Angotti, a former NBC News senior vice president and executive producer of the NBC Nightly News with Tom Brokaw told an audience in Monmouth, IL that "Yes, there is a liberal bias on the part of some reporters on news networks. The paper also reported that Angotti commented that while the Fox News Channel doesn't practice "good journalism" it does serve as an alternative for those that believe that other sources are liberally biased. He also admitted that he watches Fox because he hears stories there that he won't hear on other networks. Angotti is partially correct. There is a liberal media bias. While his reasoning seems flawed to me, I will give him credit for being honest. After all how many liberals would admit to watching Fox News because it provides him with stories the networks won't cover? I guess that has nothing to do with a liberal bias.[/quote]

You just proved my point. If those are talking points for the left (Sen Leathys remarks)...why wasnt it repeated again and again on the left leaning media? Could it be because there is no such thing as a left leaning media which has major backing by the wealthy? All the media in america is owned by 5 men. Any chance those 5 ultra wealthy men could be a lefty? Absolutly not.
Not one major news network carried that storey...arent you curious as to why? Why isnt it being discussed? Its your rights being flushed down the drain, and no one wants to discuss why?
Could it be that both the dems and the reps are in bed together...and the target is ordinary american citizens? Who are the detention camps being built for...dissenting americans? Why is there no opposition party in america? The current dems dont speak for me, nor do the repubs. I believe in the rule of law, and not the rule of man. Our constitution is under daily assult from out government, and no one seems to notice or care.
Some one once said...people end up with the government they deserve.

 

Heres an interesting editorial written yesterday, remember to exercise your mind...you dont need to believe everything which is writen, but you do need to be aware of whats out there.

The Spoils of Corruption

by Charles Sullivan

http://www.opednews.com


Like many Americans, since early childhood I was taught that good always triumphs over evil. But as I grew older and acquainted myself with the history of my country, my perspective became less na?ve and better informed. My perceptions of reality were altered forever, and I am forced to live, like so many of my readers, with the burden of knowledge that often makes reality painful to bear.

America could have been very different, but it has become a land of unfathomable corruption. It is a place where money rules and lords power over everyone and every process. Corruption has lodged itself in every tissue and every organ of our societal institutions, and riddled them with crippling disease. Perhaps more than any organ it has blinded our ability to see what is before us.

The root of corruption stems from America's love affair with private wealth and conquest. We are a culturally shallow and spiritually deprived people who seem incapable of discerning truth from fairy tales. This may be a matter of convenience for some and a survival mechanism to others.

There are three primary cultural pillars that are the underpinning of our society: government, media, and religion. It is widely assumed that these institutions exist to serve the people. Whatever their intent when they were birthed in the minds and hearts of their creators, these institutions were subverted and used to subdue and control the masses; to make them subservient to power. Virtually everything we believe about America is contradicted by the evidence, but too many of us are unwilling to come to grips with reality, which thus assures the continuation of a brutal and tortuous history of murder and conquest.

In a wonderful essay titled The Problem is Civil Obedience, historian Howard Zinn wrote, "I start from the supposition that the world is topsy-turvey, that the wrong people are in jail and the wrong people are out of jail, that the wrong people are in power and the wrong people are out of power..." Zinn, as usual, sums up the situation perfectly. But the great majority refuses to see things as they really are. They prefer fairy tales to truth that is too painful for them to acknowledge and to bear; and so the charade continues.

Those on the far right of the political spectrum are fond of saying that America is a Christian nation, when, in fact, nothing could be farther from the truth. The framers of the Constitution, especially Thomas Jefferson, took great pains to keep America from evolving into a Theocracy. Even so, religion should provide a moral compass that steers its participants away from corruption and moral morass. Yet with only a comparatively few exceptions, religion is used against its followers. It serves wealth and power, and keeps the masses ignorant, and subservient to the hierarchy of the church, which is in collusion with the money changers in government.

Organized religion, like the mainstream media and the government, is controlled by the wealthy and powerful. It serves the high priests of capitalism and is little more than an enabler of corruption and conquest. Let us not forget that Manifest Destiny was driven by a puritanical zealotry that resulted in the ethnic cleansing of a continent. The collusion of religion with material wealth lends a false aura of moral authority to disingenuous and misguided human behaviors that follow immoral government into war after war. Thus the rich continue to exploit the working people for the benefit of the ruling class.

At some point in our history Jesus of Nazareth was supplanted by Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell. The Jesus who despised the wealthy and believed in service to the poor, who in anger overturned the tables of the money changers, no longer exists within the American psyche. Unlike Jesus, Robertson and Falwell believe in accruing wealth to themselves and in assassinating their enemies. They work hand in hand with the morally bankrupt leadership that has invaded and occupies 135 of the world's 192 nations. The genuine article has somehow given way to the counterfeit, and too many of us are unable to tell the difference.

In a purer form organized religion-in this case Christianity, would be revolutionary and radical; and it would serve as a bulwark against the accumulation of private affluence in favor of public service, and a massive redistribution of wealth and power. It would find itself, like any conscientious individual, in formal opposition to the conventions of government and society, rather than an enabler of them. But that clearly is not the case these days.

The church, like all things American, more closely resembles a for profit corporation than a place where human souls are instructed in righteous behavior and healed.

Similarly, the na?ve among us broadly assume that the mainstream media exists to inform the people, and thus serves as a countervailing force against corruption and malfeasance. In truth the corporate media serves those in power rather than holding them accountable to the people. While it was not always so, the mainstream media, like organized religion, is used to program public perceptions-to steer us away from truth and to perpetuate fairy tales that extol the virtues of bribery, violence, and greed. It makes useful idiots of those who cannot think for themselves and persuades them to act like fools in the eyes of the world.

From the days of Tom Paine we have regressed to an era in which news anchors are rewarded for their loyalty to political regimes by being awarded positions in government. Tom Paine and the spirit of public service have given way to Tony Snow and Katie Couric, and the creation of media celebrities. The boundary between government and media, between church and state and corporate power, no longer exists. They are all interchangeable parts in a machine that makes a mockery of social justice and human freedoms.

Gone are the days of radical, revolutionary religion in America. Gone are the days of Thomas Jefferson and Samuel Adams, when a just and Democratic Republic seemed possible. Gone are the days of Tom Paine and the militant press that challenged corrupt power. The hands of time are no longer moving forward; we have reversed them. Once again the dark ages loom large on the horizon before us like an unseen iceberg in the chill dark of an Atlantic night.

 

Georged, I have to wonder where your facts are coming from regarding military and motives. I think you will find that man for man (And women too) you will not find a more educated workforce anywhere on the face of the earth percentage wise. They have not accepted anyone without at least a high school education for decades. As for holding degrees, I think major corporations would be hard pressed to match the numbers of people holding degress in the military. As for training, much of the specialized training received is directly carry over in many technical fields, and is accredited and accepted by major colleges and universities all over the world. This is not the military we had right after Viet Nam. They are well educated, and well trained and well respected. Kerry's comments were just a continuation of his documented outbursts against anything that resembles a service person. It stinks....

 

Oh cool, I wasn't sure what to do tonight but then I found this thread...yippie![img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-tongue.gif[/img]

I'll pass on the beer though thanks...don't want to cloud my judgement any.[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

 

I'm referring to enlisted ranks, the cannon fodder. An average and below high school educated 18-year old in this day and age not pursuing higher education has two basic options for legal entry level employment, service industry with no benefits or the now well-compensated and benefited military. Most military training is no longer directly transferable to civilian employment. Military electronic systems, transportation, weapons and logistical systems have become so highly specialized they have few civilian counterparts. I'm sure you're aware the US is migrating from creditor industrial to debtor service economy, which limits transferable military skills to defense contractors and obviously that's a finite market. As to the furnished college educations now being touted as enlisted military enlistment/re-enlistment enticement, entry-level employment for a college grad 4, 8, ten years older than contemporaries sucks, as a friend's daughter is discovering. She says her only chance for employment as a biology major is going to be on another government teat, direct or under contract, unless she teaches, none of which were on her short list.

Few people understand a well-compensated volunteer military used in a questionably offensive manner such as Iraq is just another step in the US division of haves and have-nots. Unlike Viet Nam where unpopular conscription was mandatory, the haves no longer have to be concerned about being killed, or their children killed, while engaged in a military action already a fiasco shaming Viet Nam. The thread subject is congressional corruption and if a volunteer military utilized as an aggressive, special force isn't moral corruption I'd be curious to hear why my tax dollars are funding a societal division based on entry-level compensation for high school grads. Drop the pay and bennies to meet McDonald's and see if our current levels of military 'defense' personnel are sustainable without conscription.

I don't really care what Kerry said, that's just the political game. I don't like any of them nor do I have any loyalties to past affiliations furnishing me bias. I do prefer anyone who hasn't recently held office to those in office who have been positively identified as self-serving scum.

 

I take issue with your comments my friend. I do not think they are "well compensated" The majority of enlisted lower ranks still qualify for food stamps. They are not able to begin to accumulate wealth, purchas homes etc. Their spouses and families are regularly expected to survive without them for long periods of time. Ask a military spouse, they will tell you horror stories about cars breaking down etc while hubby is out playing army in the field for months, even years. All for nothing but a kiss on the cheek when they come home.
Even with all that to deal with, you will find enlisted members looking to the future. Whether that is in attending collage while they are still serving, putting away funds to attend when they get out etc. The deal is they are the hardest working, most motivated people on the planet... and not only do we owe them a debt that can never be paid in full, they desrve our respect as well.
I speak from 20 years of experience friend.... I am retired enlisted. And although you indicate that training is specialized, I have to say that depends. I for one began my career in the AF as a Nuclear Missle tech. I transferred into Computer programming, and picked up a lot of networking, security experience along the way. I am still using that knowledge today as a consultant to the State Dept. More important than technical skills, is the experience they learn in handling pressure, doing reasearch, problem solving, team building, and your basic work ethic not found in your typical high school dropout flipping burgers. These are real world skills, and the reason why most military enlisted are successful in life. Not whiners, not with their hands out for welfare, not doing the woulda, coulda shoulda shuffle you see on every street corner... No, these are hard working patriots.
I am sorry if I have mis-classified your knowledge base... somehow it strikes me as knowledge gained second hand, or read about from books, and not based on hard facts and experience lived. Those of us that have will definately have a different view on the subject.
This is not the military of the 70's. Why just looking at the technology they are using would make one believe that it takes an over abundant amount of skill and knowledge (read that education) to even operate it, let alone efficiently.. while you are multi tasking and trying to stay alive.
I'll give you that I may not be able to carry over my knowledge of nuclear warheads, but the 96 credit hours of hands on electronics, the 65 credit hours and years experience programming systems, the 7 years of working with the AF Office of Special Investigations creating the first government agency unit to perform Criminal investigations on computer crimes and computer forensics, and helping form what we now know as computer network security technology has served me well after retirement.
And for the record, the approximately $1000 before taxes I get every month after 20 years of service doesn't even cover my truck payment after I pay taxes, and my life insurance. Not free mind you.. nor is my Dental insurance, or my Medical insurance either.. although I was promised free care for life when I enlisted in 1976. A lot of broken promises.. a broken back that I feel every day of my life. 2 Blown knees, deaf in one ear, barely can hear out of the other, Diabetic and have serious heart problems all attributed to my service years. Oh yeah.. we are sitting high on the hog alright...
My story is not unique... it actually is the norm for today's volunteer military serviceman. And still we stand up to be counted... not because we are stupid, or uneducated... or because we see the military as the last resort Some of us actually have a clear calling tht has to be answered by Actions, NOT WORDS.
Sorry the blood presure is getting to me so I have to stop...
Most people wouldn't understand.....
All I can say is stop believing what you hear in the media... and give the military service man a fair shake...

 

A personal opinion derived from career military status and subsequent, ongoing government service isn't really the issue. Corruption is the topic.

When congress funds a volunteer military with pay and benefits exceeding what the private sector generates for that demographic grouping, average and below high school grads with no intent of pursuing higher education, a mercenary force has been created. Avoidance of conscription for defense and the financial/personal hardships that creates (did create) eliminates adverse public reaction to using that force for non-defense purposes, such as the occupation of Iraq. That's moral and fiscal corruption as politically aligned special interests profit from a circumstance condemned not only by a majority of Americans, but a majority of the world.

The societal aspect of encouraging America's youth not pursuing higher education to join that mercenary force with monetary incentives is as despicable as it gets. A class distinction based on exclusion from military conscription is regressive in a democratic society, similar to using press gangs with the substitution of money for force, and as morally corrupt as any banana republic with no civilian jobs. I ask, how many children of congressional representatives, current administration, senior bureaucrats or upper class families are serving outside the green zone in Iraq? Or is the general public so apathetic and politically ignorant of anything carefully wrapped in a flag that they just don't care? What would congressional reaction about Iraq be if their sons/daughters were draftees dodging bullets and roadside bombs while killing Iraqi citizens who don't want them there?

Our morally corrupt leadership has again conned the public while using our own money and incurring debt we're responsible for to do so.