Butch's Banter

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Veteran's Day 2011

Hard Times

"Let us pause in life's pleasures and count its many tears
while we all sup sorrow with the poor.
There's a song that will linger, for ever in our ears,
Oh, hard times come again no more." ~ Stephen Foster

Let us also, pause in our daily lives on 11-11-11 and remember this day for all those who gave the ultimate sacrifice to their country and also for those who returned home to us as veterans. This is not a time of celebration but, a time for reflection and remembrance of whom were sacrificed in the name of war and peace. Let's remember those lives and their potential that was lost as well. Take a little time out and remember them and the living veterans for this is their day to be remembered.
Many thanks.

Sunday, October 23, 2011

The One Percent Deriding The Occupy Wall Street Movement.

The 1% looking down on the 99% Occupy Wall Street Movement as they drink their champagne, snap pictures of them and generally make fun from the Wall Street Stock Exchange balcony during the first week or two of the protest.

The damage the banks and Wall Street has done to the middle class in this country has finally awakened the majority of these hard working folks who have lost their entire retirement funds and savings because of Wall Street and its questionable dealings.

The rich business owners have made huge profits at the expense of the working classes by destroying their benefits, laying them off and out-sourcing their jobs out of country where they can get workers for a fraction of the cost to work for them. They also continue to hold their earnings out of country so they will not be taxed in this country.

Those out of work folks who struggle looking for jobs, are lucky to find low paying work and end up working two and three low paying, part-time jobs without benefits. The owners profit not having to pay their health care.

Those unlucky to find any employment end up foreclosing on their homes because the banks will not refinance and end up grabbing back those same homes again making another profit.

Do we wonder why the people have had enough of this and are now occupying Wall Street? We have begged our representatives and senators to do something and nothing gets done. Do you wonder why? Republicans have been bought by the corporations supporting them 100%, so you will get no where with them and the democrats have been bought off by at least 80% by corporations, so there will be no changes coming from the Congress. The president has been acting like a republican for the past three years caving to them. Now it is campaign season so he needs to become a liberal again.Expect to her all the campaign rhetoric and the lies we heard the last time he campaigned. He will protect Social Security, Medicare / Medicaid and Veteran's benefits just like he promised before. But, you will recall it was President Obama who put these very items himself on the table to be negotiated way during the "debt ceiling" debacle. A democrat! Social Security should never have been put on the table in the first place as that came from our payroll taxes and was not his to touch and had nothing to do with the budget in the first place.

It is pathetic how both parties and this president have moved so far to the right one cannot recognize them anymore. There are no liberals left to represent any of us who are liberal.

This movement does not want the democrats to try and take them over for political purposes. They had three years to make a change and failed. Now, it is the people who are going to do the job for them and the republicans. Just watch them and see how it is done nonviolently. At least we can hope it stays this way. So far, the only violence has come from the white shirted police who have tried to provoke violence and have failed. Let's hope it stays this way.