The Minority Report?

Keeping an Ear on Rove's "Mouth Junk" Circus

MeanMesa, during those breathless moments between Short Current Essay's quiet and overly tolerant treatment of unfolding events, takes a break with a free solitaire site.  After a few games -- won or lost -- energy is restored, the mind is, once again, calm, and MeanMesa is "tanned, rested and ready" for a few more posts.

Of course, all sorts of ads appear on the pop-ups there on the solitaire page, battery powered soup mixers, amazing weight loss inventions and the like.  However, the latest offering caught our eye.  It is a little something from Karl Rove's CrossRoads GPS.  Normally this little smudge would have been notably forgettable, but the "talking points" were so shockingly identical to the "mouth junk" of the House tea bags during their now famous "interviews" it caught MeanMesa's attention.

So, here it is.

1. "High Unemployment"

2. "No More BLANK CHECKS"

3. "Failed $830 Billion Stimulus"

4. "Tax Increases"

The background graphics of the little jewel, although also quite easily overlooked, are also interesting.  From them, perhaps, we can approximate a few of Carl's other ambitious points.

At the top, we see a crane unloading containers at a harbor.  In the mid-section, we see the national emblem of the PRC (China) painted on one of the containers.  At the base, we see a photo shopped black and white crowd, standing in line.

The only thing missing is a nice shot of a kitty being splayed by a sledge hammer.

Blinking Gimmic on MeanMesa's Favorite Solitaire Page

Also, we have to note the graphic presentation strategy of using a nice, highly casual, cartoon comic font for everything except the compressed Helvetica of the "BLANK CHECKS" line.  Karl knows that, when appealing to hill billies and bigots, a nicely measured folksy nihilism should be communicated by one's font selection.

How homey.

Of course, removing the "fenders" from the CrossRoads GPS pitch is simple enough.  Each "point" of the talking points' "points" is, actually, entirely contradictory to the facts -- and not just contradictory to some difficult to unearth facts which might require some serious research, but contradictory to very public facts which can only be successfully avoided by tuning in exclusively to FOX NEWS and absolutely nothing else, ever.  Not even for a few seconds.

What's the Point?

The point is that there are millions of Americans who can look at this little stinker and simply nod their heads in agreement.

"Yup.  Thet therez perzactly raht."

So, where do these FOXites land in the next election?  Is there any possible point to arguing with them?  Are they out there somewhere waiting to be persuaded?

Normally, MeanMesa would say "Don't bother."

However, this time around, millions of these normally out-of-reach voters will still be reeling from what's gone on in the last two weeks.  Millions of them will have been wringing their hands for hours before a sleepless night wondering if they were going to get their Social Security checks.

And, it doesn't stop there, either.

Millions more of them have been wringing their hands about just what can be done with Mom if she doesn't get her Social Security check.  Millions more of them have been wringing their hands about what can be done if Medicaid quits paying for Mom to stay in the extended care home.

Although Americans have a world renown reputation for short memories, this hand wringing business may actually be something of an exception.  In fact, the memories of these long, hand wringing nights are, most likely, plenty strong enough to last the 15 months until the 2012 election.

FOX News has done every thing possible, sparing no expense, to stupify these members of the Republican base in hopes of permanently inoculating them from ever being open to any other political ideas, but in this case the Republicans themselves have cracked their own, hyper expensive, barricade.

There is "over reaching" and then there is this kind of "over reaching."

When all these "hand wringing types" are added to another interesting bloc in the Republican base, the election results get even more dicey.

Wait.  "Another interesting bloc?"

Yes, these would be the base Republicans who can remember that Boehner, only a few months ago, was saying that "creating jobs" was the reason that the American people sent the whole freak show to Washington in the 2010 election.  Perhaps this same bunch was also able to hear -- of all places, on FOX News -- Boehner now saying that the reason the freak show was sent to Washington was to "cut spending."

If you are a Republican base type "wringing your hands" about Social Security and Medicaid, you probably have a son who has been "wringing his hands" about jobs -- especially if he needs one.  Suddenly, another few million Republican base voters have been added to the "inadequately inoculated list."

When Presidential elections have a habit of being decided (when the votes are actually counted...) on a few hundred thousand or a million vote margins, this population of staggering, confused and dis-satisfied Republican base voters could be rather important.  Worse, for the Republicans, this "hand wringing" business may prove to be a strong enough influence to motivate these confused GOPCons to stagger from their mobile homes down to the polls.

Where they might vote for a Democrat -- you know, just to "send a message."  You know, just like they "sent a message" in 2010.

Oooops.

And, since we're gathering all the "low hanging fruit" for our 2012 GOPCon "fruit cake," we still have to add one last, normally never even considered, complicating clutch of dis-satisfied GOPCons to the mix.

The oligarchs.

These poor folks will have channelled literally millions of their "yacht and jewelry dollars" into the Citizens United media blitz to throw the 2012, not to mention all the day to day millions they have soaked into FOX News and the rest of the corporate media.

These billionaires will suddenly turn on Murdoch and the other fascist "service providers" when their very expensive prize is not delivered, very dramatically  assuming the sack cloth mantle of victimhood, you know, as in having been "deceived" by the radio crowd who promised them spectacularly better results for their investment in attacking democracy.

See?  Everybody wins.

Licking Our Wounds? Try Not To Giggle

While most Americans are still reeling from the "extortion negotiations" which have been unfolding in Washington, the FOXites have been literally ejaculating as they declare victory and supremacy over the White House.  However, when we examine the facts a little more carefully, we see a significantly different picture emerging.

Of course, this could be another posting which amounted to nothing more than MeanMesa's opinion on the subject.  The remainder of this post is a transcript of President Obama's speech on the economy from January 8, 2009.

So, all you grave robbers, derelicts and thugs there in the victory parade, read it and weep.  You have been out classed on such a scale that it will be several months before you realize that you have been had by a pro.

Sorry.

Rupert Murdoch has convinced 50 million Americans that this man is President

(image source)

Transcript

Source: New York Times

Obama's Speech on the Economy

Published: January 8, 2009

The following is a transcript of President-Elect Barack Obamas speech on the economy, as prepared by Federal News Service.

PRESIDENT-ELECT OBAMA: (Cheers, applause.) Thank you. Everybody be seated. Thank you very much. (Applause continues.) Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you. (Applause continues.) Thank you very much. Thank you, everybody. Thank you. Please be seated. Thank you so much.

Let me begin by thanking George Mason University for their extraordinary hospitality and to thank all the great friends, the governors, the mayors, who are in attendance here today.

Throughout America's history, there have been some years that simply rolled into the next without much notice or fanfare, and then there are the years that come along once in a generation, the kind that mark a clean break from a troubled past and set a new course for our nation. This is one of those years.

We start 2009 in the midst of a crisis unlike any we have seen in our lifetime, a crisis that has only deepened over the last few weeks. Nearly 2 million jobs have been now lost, and on Friday we're likely to learn that we lost more jobs last year than at any time since World War II. Just in the past year, another 2.8 million Americans who want and need full-time work have had to settle for part-time jobs. Manufacturing has hit a 28-year low. Many businesses cannot borrow or make payroll. Many families cannot pay their bills or their mortgage. Many workers are watching their life savings disappear. And many, many Americans are both anxious and uncertain of what the future will hold.

Now, I don't believe it's too late to change course, but it will be if we don't take dramatic action as soon as possible. If nothing is done, this recession could linger for years. The unemployment rate could reach double digits. Our economy could fall $1 trillion short of its full capacity, which translates into more than $12,000 in lost income for a family of four. We could lose a generation of potential and promise, as more young Americans are forced to forgo dreams of college or the chance to train for the jobs of the future. And our nation could lose the competitive edge that has served as a foundation for our strength and our standing in the world.

In short, a bad situation could become dramatically worse.

This crisis did not happen solely by some accident of history or normal turn of the business cycle, and we won't get out of it by simply waiting for a better day to come or relying on the worn-out dogmas of the past. We arrived at this point due to an era of profound irresponsibility that stretched from corporate boardrooms to the halls of power in Washington, D.C.

For years, too many Wall Street executives made imprudent and dangerous decisions, seeking profits with too little regard for risk, too little regulatory scrutiny, and too little accountability. Banks made loans without concern for whether borrowers could repay them, and some borrowers took advantage of cheap credit to take on debt they couldn't afford. Politicians spent taxpayer money without wisdom or discipline and too often focused on scoring political points instead of problems they were sent here to solve. The result has been a devastating loss of trust and confidence in our economy, our financial markets and our government.

Now, the very fact that this crisis is largely of our own making means that it's not beyond our ability to solve. Our problems are rooted in past mistakes, not our capacity for future greatness. It will take time, perhaps many years, but we can rebuild that lost trust and confidence. We can restore opportunity and prosperity.

We should never forget that our workers are still more productive than any on Earth. Our universities are still the envy of the world. We are still home to the most brilliant minds, the most creative entrepreneurs and the most advanced technology and innovation that history has ever known. And we are still the nation that has overcome great fears and improbable odds.

If we act with the urgency and seriousness that this moment requires, I know that we can do it again. That is why I have moved quickly to work with my economic team and leaders of both parties on an American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan that will immediately jump- start job creation and long-term growth. It's a plan that represents not just new policy, but a whole new approach to meeting our most urgent challenges. For if we hope to end this crisis, we must end the culture of "anything goes" that helped create it. And this change must begin in Washington. It's time to trade old habits for a new spirit of responsibility. It is time to finally change the ways of Washington so that we can set a new and better course for America.

There is no doubt that the cost of this plan will be considerable. It will certainly add to the budget deficit in the short term. But equally certain are the consequences of doing too little or nothing at all, for that will lead to an even greater deficit of jobs, incomes and confidence in our economy.

It is true that we cannot depend on government alone to create jobs or long-term growth, but at this particular moment, only government can provide the short-term boost necessary to lift us from a recession this deep and severe.

Only government can break the cycle that are crippling our economy -- where a lack of spending leads to lost jobs which leads to even less spending; where an inability to lend and borrow stops growth and leads to even less credit.

That's why we need to act boldly and act now to reverse these cycles. That's why we need to put money in the pockets of the American people, create new jobs, and invest in our future. That's why we need to restart the flow of credit and restore the rules of the road that will ensure a crisis like this never happens again.

And this plan begins with -- this plan must begin today, a plan I am confident will save or create at least 3 million jobs over the next few years. It is not just another public-works program; it's a plan that recognizes both the paradox and the promise of this moment -- the fact that there are millions of Americans trying to find work even as, all around the country, there's so much work to be done. And that's why we'll invest in priorities like energy and education; health care and a new infrastructure that are necessary to keep us strong and competitive in the 21st century. That's why the overwhelming majority of the jobs created will be in the private sector, while our plan will save the public sector jobs of teachers, police officers, firefighters and others who provide vital services.

To finally spark the creation of a clean-energy economy, we will double the production of alternative energy in the next three years. We will modernize more than 75 percent of federal buildings and improve the energy efficiency of 2 million American homes, saving consumers and taxpayers billions on our energy bills. In the process, we will put Americans to work in new jobs that pay well and can't be outsourced -- jobs building solar panels and wind turbines, constructing fuel-efficient cars and buildings, and developing the new energy technologies that will lead to even more jobs, more savings, and a cleaner, safer planet in the bargain.

To improve the quality of our health care while lowering its cost, we will make the immediate investments necessary to ensure that within five years all of America's medical records are computerized. This will cut waste, eliminate red tape, and reduce the need to repeat expensive medical tests. But it just won't save billions of dollars and thousands of jobs, it will save lives by reducing the deadly but preventable medical errors that pervade our health care system.

To give our children the chance to live out their dreams in a world that's never been more competitive, we will equip tens of thousands of schools, community colleges and public universities with 21st-century classrooms, labs and libraries. We'll provide new computers, new technology, and new training for teachers so that students in Chicago and Boston can compete with kids in Beijing for the high-tech, high-wage jobs of the future.

To build an economy that can lead this future, we will begin to rebuild America. Yes, we'll put people to work repairing crumbling roads, bridges and schools by eliminating the backlog of well-planned, worthy and needed infrastructure projects, but we'll also do more to retrofit America for a global economy. That means updating the way we get our electricity by starting to build a new smart grid that will save us money, protect our power sources from blackout or attack, and deliver clean, alternative forms of energy to every corner of our nation. It means expanding broadband lines across America so that a small business in a rural town can connect and compete with their counterparts anywhere in the world. And it means investing in the science, research and technology that will lead to new medical breakthroughs, new discoveries, and entire new industries.

And finally, this recovery and reinvestment plan will provide immediate relief to states, workers and families who are bearing the brunt of this recession. To get people spending again, 95 percent of working families will receive a thousand-dollar tax cut, the first stage of a middle-class tax cut that I promised during the campaign and will include in our next budget. To help Americans who have lost their jobs and can't find new ones, we'll continue the bipartisan extension of unemployment insurance and health-care coverage to help them through this crisis. Government at every level will have to tighten its belt, but we'll help struggling states avoid harmful budget cuts, as long as they take responsibility and use the money to maintain essential services like police, fire, education and health care.

Now, I understand that some might be skeptical of this plan. Our government has already spent a good deal of money, but we haven't yet seen that translate into more jobs or higher incomes or renewed confidence in our economy. And that's why the American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan won't just throw money at our problems; we'll invest in what works. The true test of the policies we'll pursue won't be whether they're Democratic or Republican ideas, whether they're conservative or liberal ideas, but whether they create jobs, grow our economy, and put the American Dream within reach of the American people.

Instead of politicians doling out money behind a veil of secrecy, decisions about where we invest will be made transparently, and informed by independent experts wherever possible. Every American will be able to hold Washington accountable for these decisions by going online to see how and where their taxpayer dollars are being spent. And as I announced yesterday, we will launch an unprecedented effort to eliminate unwise and unnecessary spending that has never been more unaffordable for our nation and our children's future than it is right now.

We have to make tough choices and smart investments today so that as the economy recovers, the deficits start coming down. We cannot have a solid recovery if our people and our businesses don't have confidence that we're getting our fiscal house in order. And that's why our goal is not to create a slew of new government programs, but a foundation for long-term economic growth.

That also means an economic recovery plan that is free from earmarks and pet projects. I understand that every member of Congress has ideas about how to spend money, and many of these projects are worthy. They benefit local communities. But this emergency legislation must not be the vehicle for those aspirations. This must be a time when leaders in both parties put the urgent needs of our nation above our own narrow interests.

Now, this recovery plan alone will not solve all the problems that led us into this crisis. We must also work with the same sense of urgency to stabilize and repair the financial system we all depend on. That means using our full arsenal of tools to get credit flowing again to families and business, while restoring confidence in our markets. It means launching a sweeping effort to address the foreclosure crisis so that we can keep responsible families in their homes. It means preventing the catastrophic failure of financial institutions whose collapse could endanger the entire economy, but only with maximum protections for taxpayers and a clear understanding that government support for any company is an extraordinary action that must come with significant restrictions on the firms that receive support. And it means reforming a weak and outdated regulatory system so that we can better withstand financial shocks and better protect consumers, investors and businesses from the reckless greed and risk- taking that must never endanger our prosperity again.

No longer can we allow Wall Street wrongdoers to slip through regulatory cracks. No longer can we allow special interests to put their thumbs on the economic scales. No longer can we allow the unscrupulous lending and borrowing that leads only to destructive cycles of bubble and bust.

It is time to set a new course for this economy, and that change must begin now. We should have an open and honest discussion about this recovery plan in the days ahead, but I urge Congress to move as quickly as possible on behalf of the American people. For every day we wait or point fingers or drag our feet, more Americans will lose their jobs; more families will lose their savings; more dreams will be deferred and denied; and our nation will sink deeper into a crisis that, at some point, we may not be able to reverse.

That is not the country I know. It is not a future I accept as president of the United States. A world that depends on the strength of our economy is now watching and waiting for America to lead once more, and that is what we will do.

It will not come easy or happen overnight, and it is altogether likely that things may get worse before they get better. But that is all the more reason for Congress to act without delay. I know the scale of this plan is unprecedented, but so is the severity of our situation. We have already tried the wait-and-see approach to our problems, and it is the same approach that helped lead us to this day of reckoning.

And that is why the time has come to build a 21st-century economy in which hard work and responsibility are once again rewarded. That's why I'm asking Congress to work with me and my team day and night, on weekends if necessary, to get the plan passed in the next few weeks. That's why I'm calling on all Americans -- Democrats and Republicans and independents -- to put -- to put good ideas ahead of the old ideological battles, a sense of common purpose above the same narrow partisanship, and insist that the first question each of us asks isn't "What's good for me?" but "What's good for the country my children will inherit?"

More than any program or policy, it is this spirit that will enable us to confront these challenges with the same spirit that has led previous generations to face down war and depression and fear itself. And if we do -- if we are able to summon that spirit again; if are able to look out for one another and listen to one another, and do our part for our nation and for posterity -- then I have no doubt that, years from now, we will look back on 2009 as one of those years that marked another new and hopeful beginning for the United States of America.

Thank you, God bless you, and may God bless the United States of America. (Applause.) Thank you. (Applause.)

How To Quit Worrying About Default and Be Happy

A Quick Review of Recent History

Two weeks ago we had already found ourselves "ankle deep" in the fraudulent mayhem of the artificially created "debt default crisis." Every wing nut pundit sober enough to get his face up to a microphone or place fingers on his key board was in a "creative frenzy," inebriated by the wonderful opportunity.  

The media response could be measured in, well, thousand gigabyte packages.

The information challenged electorate had "taken the bait."  The "debt crisis"  had very conveniently displaced the resilient 15% unemployment rate as the "burning question of the day."

And, just in time.

The tea bags, the most recent denizens of Boehner's uncontrollable GOPCon House of  Representatives, have finally faced an unavoidable "moment of clarity."  Not  only are they utterly unable to dream up any legislation not previously drilled into them by single syllable, right wing talking points -- anti-abortion, anti-gay marriage, anti-Medicare, anti-regulation and the like --  they are also unable to hatch even so much as a single, feeble talking point version of any sort of jobs bill.

So, what did this leave them?

Easy.  Attack the only "hostage" left standing after they extorted the unemployment insurance last year for their sacred tax cuts.  Amazingly, the present plan amounted to nothing less than presenting a terrifying, morbid reminder of their own party's record spending binge during the autocracy.  Of course, the well controlled media has not yet touched on these facts, but it will.  

Even toothpaste salesmen know who butters their bread.

Meanwhile, the plan lurched forward to re-create a dreary, road weary repetition of the old Republican economy wrecking measures of FDR days.  It hasn't been all that bad for them, at least, not yet.  Apparently the tea bags were also unable to read through the comic book to the part about Roosevelt's successes in overcoming the reactionary attacks on his spending policy.

What we have now is a nearly suicidal duplication of the first few pages of that old tale from the 1930's.  You know, the part just before the Democratic landslide election victory which swept both chambers of Congress, the White House and, ultimately, even the Supreme Court.  However, having read only the first pages of the comic, the tea bags haven't encountered that part about the "repeating" history -- yet.

"Doomed to Repeat History" (image source)

Perhaps, in a more perfect world the old adage about "being doomed to repeat history" might not really apply here.  There was, after all, some sort of early April form of fetal GOPCon strategy to avoid being "doomed to repeat history," but the burning bridge didn't last long enough to strand anyone who matters on the wrong side. 

Their coats and boots now charred by the flames, even the tea bag oligarch masters are horrified.  The hilarious surprise emerges from the fact that the tea bags aren't accepting phone calls from anybody, not Wall Street, not the banksters, not the Koch Brothers, Exxon, Grover Norquist -- not anybody except Murdoch.  We can even find a flaming pillary for the remnant of Speaker John Boehner in the tea bag fires of auto de fe', as if there weren't already enough smoldering corpses.

The Amazing Qualities of FOX Graduates

Amazingly, the tea bags manifest a propaganda success.  They have exposed themselves to the FOX News crowd for thousands of hours, isolated from any contradicting thoughts or even any contradicting "news."  The ideological redecoration has been so penetrating that entire vocabularies have derived from this source  -- vocabularies found no where else in natural organic life.

We see notable examples of this phenomenon when tea bags speak in their famous "press releases" and "interviews." Should some troublesome interviewer "press" a conversation beyond the typical softball invitations for more talking points, tea bags instantly become curiously defensive, victimized -- and, baffled.  The public discourse on the phony default issue is certainly no exception.

The problem facing the oligarchs is interesting.  The tea bags were not supposed to remain mindlessly propagandized after the election.  The plan was that, once the House seats had been filled, Washington cynicism would set in, converting the erstwhile noble libertarians into campaign contribution gobbling rodents like the other Congressional "projects" of the billionaires.

Instead, the now totally out of control tea bags retained all the tenets of the old propaganda, and now, clearly, intend to apply the FOX maxims to intractably difficult and complex "real life" dilemmas.  The "spending cut frenzy" was intended to be a useful, temporary little tantrum to be played only until the material influence of corporate cash had time to gradually convert the players to the thought challenged unanimity of Republican "business as usual."

Quite aside from the hostage taking over the debt limit, the GOPCon 2012 election strategy is also unfolding in all it's predictably hysterical splendor.  All across America hundreds of thousands of Social Security seniors are spending sleepless nights, wringing their hands and staring at their stash of cat food.  Combat military are asking the Head of the Joint Chiefs what they can do without their August pay checks.  Even semi-cogent Medicaid residents in old folks homes have begun to sense that something unthinkable is about to happen.

Of course there is still a base these Republicans can count on for the 2012, just not enough to justify adding the names of any GOPCon candidates to the ballot's printing costs.

It's actually quite amusing to watch those who would be our masters quaking in their penny loafers.

Plan On Having More Folks For Dinner

Our War Veterans

We must be ready to stand in when the times demand it

-- just like they have.

No hunger.  No despair.  No isolation.  No suicide. 

 

We're in it together. (image source)

MeanMesa understands that Americans place plenty (still, perhaps not enough) of tax dollars aside to care for those who have been wounded in the places like Afghanistan, the Iraqi Oil War and everywhere else.  This isn't a casual altruism.  The soldiers and Marines who need help like that rely on the rest of us Americans to make sure that they have it.

Now, the tea bags and their corporatist masters have taken decisions to deny the veterans this help that they need, sooner or later, planning to convert the money we have saved for this purpose to tax cuts.  Thanks to the same folks, there are no jobs waiting for these veterans once they are on their feet again.

There is nothing to be done about this until the November 2012 election.

However, in the meantime, the responsibility will fall to the rest of us to make every possible effort to assist our veterans in whatever way possible.  Until the reactionaries are out of the Congress, our American veterans will have no place to look for help beyond us -- their neighbors and their fellow Americans.

Granted, none of us have much, but we can all find something to spare.  We can help in all sorts of ways.  For one thing, we can help take care of families who await their "missing faces" to come home.  We can slip a little food on the porch of folks who, because of this business in Washington, find themselves a little short.

We can cut their grass, figure out to how to fix their cars and try to repair their plumbing until the system begins to, once again, function.

Don't know a veteran or a veteran's family?  They are all around you.  Worse, they are all about to get hurt -- big time.  

Find them.  Introduce yourself.

Then help.

GOPCons - How To Make Money On the Credit Default

Credit Default Swaps Without the Training Wheels

When oligarch children grow up to the age of majority, they naturally want to follow in the footsteps of their parents.  Of course, the little tykes have had a chance to play with things such as credit default swaps, CDO's and fraudulent securitized mortgage blocks while they were running about the mansion grounds on their tricycles.

Oh my goodness.  The "little people" are defaulting. (image source)

But once the "terrible teens" set in, all that "starter package" looting and pillaging quickly loses its glitter and the youngsters are ready for some of the real stuff.  Mommy and Daddy might give them a railroad or a "starter corporation" to dismember, but even such larger presents still leave them challenged when they look in awe at the gigantic looting schemes the parents are pulling off right and left.

The kids have seen the autocracy slice down the tax rates for the oligarchs, Big Phama luxuriating in non-negotiable rates for Medicare Part D and the health insurance companies raising rates to welcome in the Affordable Care Act, so they, quite predictably are "chomping at the bit" for the next big move.

Even if they are still too young to drive and have to take the family limousine to the Summer Looting Festival.

The Summer Looting Festival

So, exactly how will Mom and Dad rake in the bucks from the nation's credit default?

We have to look at a couple of the examples mentioned above to get the "lay of the land."

1.) Let's take a look at the non-negotiable Medicare Part D bill that got passed at 3 AM.  What "goes missing" right away is any discussion of exactly why all those drugs wind up costing so much.  No need to even think about it.  The deal was solid.  

The GOPCons would vote for the socialistic drug bill with the grinning assistance of the lobbyists of the Big PHARMA oligarchs who were promised that they would never have to compete for prices again in this century.  

There was no imaginable reason why the federal government (under the autocrat) should ever so much as "blink an eye" at the prospect of outright price fixing, windfall profits and back room cronyism.

Since then, PHARMAgarchs have pocketed hundreds of billions of dollars of "profit."  Totally legal.

It's been paradise.  Republicans helping the old and infirm, uh, to get the medicine they need.   No need to note that the money to pay for it was borrowed.

2.) Next, let's consider the premium rate increases the HEALTHCAREgarchs have imposed -- utterly without any basis in cost whatsoever -- very, very quickly before the Affordable Care Act had a chance to come into effect and stop them.

A "new word" was quickly introduced into the "talking points."  "Uncertainty."  Although the entire Affordable Care Act is written in black and white for business planners to read, health care costs have become "uncertain."  And, since "uncertainty" validates any money hoarding or savage price fixing, business could hardly be expected to spend any of the estimated $2 Trillion they have on their books and anyone -- such as an employer -- who might have to actually buy health insurance immediately raised all prices because of the "uncertainty."

You guessed it.  Since the business agents of the oligarchs "don't know how expensive health insurance will become," the situation will become "uncertain."

Premium rates went up around 35% on average since then, even though actual health care costs only increased around 6%.

Making Money From the National Debt Default

Let's lay out the plan.

The oligarchs' GOPCon servants follow their orders and block the moves to raise the debt ceiling -- even though the same people who are now ranting and raving about not raising the debt ceiling have already raised the debt ceiling seven times in the last decade -- making the country's credit rating go down and interest payments go up.

Borrowing money will become more expensive.

However, among the oligarchs, very conveniently, no one knows how expensive.  But, remember, the corporatist crowd doesn't need to borrow any money -- they already have $2 trillion on the books from the looting during the autocracy.

So....

You guessed it.  Since the business agents of the oligarchs "don't know how expensive borrowing will become," the situation will become "uncertain."

Then, following the path set down by PHARMA and the Health Care insurance industry, prices can be raised immediately without any possible corresponding reason such as the costs of anything.  This means that, if you are a corporation or an oligarch, you can raise prices as much as you want even if you don't have to borrow any money at all because you have trillions of dollars in the bank already.

The increased prices, all carefully justified by the imaginary extra cost of borrowing even when there is no borrowing taking place or necessary, suddenly boost the amount of consumer money flowing into your money bin, complaints about the price increases can be dispatched easily as merely another effect of the default and higher interest rates, no problem that they are utterly inflationary.  

If that excuse doesn't shut up the whining, starving middle class consumers, there's always the "uncertainty" issue.

And, bonus-wise, if anybody does actually have to borrow money, they can borrow it from you!  But wait, what interest will you be charging?  The national credit rate has gone up, because of the uncertainty!

Oh darn.  Mom and Dad certainly didn't want to have to raise the interest rates they charge, just willy nilly, but in the atmosphere of national default, higher rates and, of course, the uncertainty, they had no choice.

If you are one of the "chosen few," that is, one of the oligarchs, you will be forced to increase the interest rates on the loans you make because the credit rating of the entire country has caused national debt interest rates to increase.  Once this is in place, your "take" will, naturally, also increase.  That, dear visitors, is "how you do it."

You get the idea.  This is currently the "dinner topic" in our oligarch family mansion.