<div dir="ltr"><div><a href="http://www.news-gazette.com/opinion/letters-the-editor/2019-04-20/letter-the-editor-life-good-those-1-percent-households.html">http://www.news-gazette.com/opinion/letters-the-editor/2019-04-20/letter-the-editor-life-good-those-1-percent-households.html</a>  <br></div><div><br></div>My letter published last Saturday:<div><br></div><div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 8pt;line-height:107%;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Discussion of Illinois’ budget/taxation issues excludes the
context necessary to understand four decades of increased wealth and income
inequality, and the concurrent lowering of overall (federal, state, local) tax
rates for the wealthy. Historical income and wealth data reflect federal
policies, promoted by the 1%, which have dramatically increased their national wealth
and income shares while garnering virtually all gains resulting from increased worker
productivity.</p>

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 8pt;line-height:107%;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Through political manipulation by both parties and their funders,
the richest 1% of households has increased its share of national wealth by 20%
since 1980, to over 40%. For Illinois one percenters, this means an additional
$440 billion, or $7 million per 1% household: those with average assets of $14
million.</p>

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 8pt;line-height:107%;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Similarly, the yearly national income share of the
wealthiest 1% has increased by 7%, to 18%. In Illinois, this means that households
with incomes over $400,000, averaging over $1 million, have in recent years collectively
appropriated at least $50 billion annually from the working class.</p>

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 8pt;line-height:107%;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Meanwhile, overall (federal, state, local) tax rates for the
rich have decreased from 45% to 35% of income, saving $14 billion annually for
the Illinois 1%.</p>

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 8pt;line-height:107%;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The money needed to fully fund the state budget and pensions
is a pittance in these contexts. But propagandists from the Illinois Policy
Institute and Chamber of Commerce, lobbying for the greed of the 1%, will
continue to offer excuses that don’t rise to the level of “the dog ate my
homework.” And Jim Dey will continue to parrot those excuses, <i>ad nauseum</i>.</p></div></div><br><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_attr">On Fri, May 3, 2019 at 5:55 PM J.B. Nicholson via Peace-discuss <<a href="mailto:peace-discuss@lists.chambana.net">peace-discuss@lists.chambana.net</a>> wrote:<br></div><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0px 0px 0px 0.8ex;border-left:1px solid rgb(204,204,204);padding-left:1ex">News from Neptune #419<br>
A "Another Coup Coup" edition<br>
Video: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yBElODqEZFk" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yBElODqEZFk</a><br>
<br>
A list of links to references made on the show.<br>
<br>
Dexter Filkins on "John Bolton on the Warpath"<br>
<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/05/06/john-bolton-on-the-warpath" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/05/06/john-bolton-on-the-warpath</a><br>
<br>
Pepe Escobar<br>
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pepe_Escobar" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pepe_Escobar</a> -- includes links to his many <br>
articles for multiple publications (RT, Counterpunch, The Real News, <br>
TomDispatch, etc.)<br>
<br>
"Can't Anybody Here Play This Game?" book<br>
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Can%27t_Anybody_Here_Play_This_Game%3F" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Can%27t_Anybody_Here_Play_This_Game%3F</a><br>
<br>
Max Fischer on "What Makes a Coup Succeed? Confidence, Consensus and a <br>
Sense of Inevitability"<br>
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/02/world/americas/venezuela-coup.html" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/02/world/americas/venezuela-coup.html</a><br>
<br>
Jon Queally on "Biden Sides With Trump, Bolton, and Pompeo in Backing Coup <br>
Effort in Venezuela"<br>
<a href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/2019/05/01/biden-sides-trump-bolton-and-pompeo-backing-coup-effort-venezuela" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.commondreams.org/news/2019/05/01/biden-sides-trump-bolton-and-pompeo-backing-coup-effort-venezuela</a><br>
<br>
Paul Krugman on "The Trouble With Joe and Bernie"<br>
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/02/opinion/sanders-biden-2020.html" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/02/opinion/sanders-biden-2020.html</a><br>
<br>
David Brooks on "The Revolt of the Democratic Elites"<br>
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/02/opinion/biden-bernie-democrats.html" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/02/opinion/biden-bernie-democrats.html</a><br>
<br>
Related: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVeXom6HzIQ" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVeXom6HzIQ</a> -- Jimmy Dore on <br>
Bernie Sanders' recent Fox News "Town Hall meeting" where the host asked <br>
the audience about supporting a Sanders-style Medicare for All instead of <br>
their private work-supplied healthcare. The audience was in widespread <br>
agreement; Medicare for All is worth switching to.<br>
<br>
Matt Bruenig on "Universal Health Care Might Cost You Less Than You Think"<br>
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/29/opinion/medicare-for-all-cost.html" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/29/opinion/medicare-for-all-cost.html</a><br>
<br>
Dr. Dean Baker on "Medicare for All Act: Testimony Before House Rules <br>
Committee" (Testimony by Dr. Dean Baker, Senior Economist, Center for <br>
Economic and Policy Research to the House of Representatives, Rules <br>
Committee, April 30, 2019.)<br>
<a href="https://www.counterpunch.org/2019/05/03/medicare-for-all-act-testimony-before-house-rules-committee/" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.counterpunch.org/2019/05/03/medicare-for-all-act-testimony-before-house-rules-committee/</a><br>
<br>
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on "legitimacy" of "Maduro regime"<br>
<a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/aoc-punts-on-venezuela-says-shell-defer-to-caucus-leadership" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.foxnews.com/politics/aoc-punts-on-venezuela-says-shell-defer-to-caucus-leadership</a><br>
<a href="https://www.nationalreview.com/2019/05/democrats-split-in-responses-to-venezuela-crisis/" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.nationalreview.com/2019/05/democrats-split-in-responses-to-venezuela-crisis/</a><br>
<br>
Jeffrey St. Clair in "Roaming Charges: Biden in Plain Sight"<br>
<a href="https://www.counterpunch.org/2019/05/03/roaming-charges-biden-in-plain-sight/" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.counterpunch.org/2019/05/03/roaming-charges-biden-in-plain-sight/</a><br>
<br>
Impeachable offenses<br>
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impeachment#Impeachable_offenses" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impeachment#Impeachable_offenses</a><br>
<br>
Glenn Greenwald vs. James Risen on what treason means<br>
Transcript: <br>
<a href="https://theintercept.com/2018/02/21/intercepted-podcast-russiamania-glenn-greenwald-vs-james-risen/" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://theintercept.com/2018/02/21/intercepted-podcast-russiamania-glenn-greenwald-vs-james-risen/</a><br>
Video: <br>
<a href="https://theintercept.com/2018/02/21/video-glenn-greenwald-and-james-risen-debate-the-trumprussia-investigation/" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://theintercept.com/2018/02/21/video-glenn-greenwald-and-james-risen-debate-the-trumprussia-investigation/</a><br>
<br>
War of Aggression<br>
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_aggression" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_aggression</a><br>
<br>
New York Times Editorial Board on "A Rising Tide of Anti-Semitism"<br>
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/30/opinion/cartoon-nytimes.html" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/30/opinion/cartoon-nytimes.html</a><br>
<br>
Philip Weiss on "I was wrong about anti-Semitism going away"<br>
<a href="https://mondoweiss.net/2019/04/wrong-about-semitism/" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://mondoweiss.net/2019/04/wrong-about-semitism/</a><br>
<br>
Aaron Maté on Russiagate<br>
<a href="https://twitter.com/aaronjmate/status/1124136736563638272" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/aaronjmate/status/1124136736563638272</a><br>
<br>
C. G. Estabrook<br>
<a href="http://www.news-gazette.com/opinion/letters-the-editor/2019-04-23/letter-the-editor-us-waging-war-all-over-the-globe.html" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">http://www.news-gazette.com/opinion/letters-the-editor/2019-04-23/letter-the-editor-us-waging-war-all-over-the-globe.html</a><br>
<br>
[Sadly, the News-Gazette doesn't make it easy to find particular letters to <br>
the editor. Please do add a link to David Green's recent letter to the <br>
editor if you know the URL for that letter.]<br>
<br>
-J<br>
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</blockquote></div>