"Break 'Em Up, Barack!"

The news article I chose this week was the Huffington Post piece “Obama proposes to cut Corporate tax rate from 35 to 28” percent, which would bring the rate to about 25 with incentives. While most media (and pundit-people) seem to focus on those rate changes, the more effective governing tools being used are the closing of certain loopholes (private jets subsidies) and ending of oil and gas industry subsidies, coupled with a new repatriation policy and the closing of certain tax shelters. This plan would bring an end to the “Bush Tax Cuts,” finally (also, as well). This will undoubtedly bring much needed revenue into the US without having to raise tax rates or new taxes, but instead by lowering them and broadening the base (ironically, a long time goal of republican and libertarian activists). Who stands to profit? The stability of the State system. Who loses? MNC’s of a certain ilk who profit from the instability of the global trade structure (globalization). Where many are seeing “President Obama gives in again,” I see instead a call for allegiance. In response, we hear a clear, “Nope. Not to you and Your Administration!” For example, any cross-border trade requires treaties and alliances between states; Think the tiny island nation of Nauru, long a tax-haven (until 2003), currently used by China and Australia as a way point for various funds. If some terrorist attacked the Australian prison facility there, who knows why, would not American troops based in Australia respond? Likely. If pirates board Chinese trading ships near Nauru, will not the US Navy intervene? Likely. The point being, the US fiat dollar is the backbone of the world economy, our military the most powerful, and we lend credibility to the UN and their actions when we are also following international laws. The UN, while not a world government in the “Ahhh! One World Government” way of thinking, does “recognize” sovereign states as its essential function. This in turn provides a place for dialogue and diplomacy for those states recognized, to help prevent grievances from becoming skirmishes and skirmishes from becoming wars. This is a “fiat” sort of government, and while it is by no means perfect, it backed most credibly by the US fiat dollar. A system like we have right now can only last while the trust that backs the dollar is freely given. The global market is an easy tool to use if you do not recognize the allegiances that make your market possible, but instead focus on forcing specialization in markets for the purpose of bleeding a population dry of resources and making them dependent on the government. Then, use your enormous power of Trade to coerce government action or non-action as suits your profits, or just buy out the government through lobbyists. Hey, everyone wins right? Specialization is good at first, sure, but everyone loses when the resources run dry. That’s when the governments get unstable. And who stands to profit? These same MNC’s. We are in a new age, yet again. One inescapable responsibility of each US citizen is our mutual allegiance to the federal state. This is the trust, the power of our Federal Government (and our documents) that has led to our Treasuries being the currency of reserve, in case the reserve runs dry. In short, all of Globalization rises and falls daily on the stability of the US dollar. MNC’s have a unique ability to affect this instability, and I believe have mostly learned to profit from it. Now we are going to see a number of industry bubbles in the economy burst as libertarian leaders of certain MNC’s begin a “business offensive” to prevent re-election of the President. For whatever reason, but mostly because he would move a plan like he is. Next step, Break ‘Em Up, Barack!  Summing up the point: States, not tribes, are what provide progress and protect for modern civilization; adding civil laws that are above or equal to church doctrine is another of America’s great strengths. Without revenue, our state, and with it modern civilization will surely collapse. 

                The lecture video as aired on CBN was enlightening in its use of “fear of Islam” to advance a public agenda for specific MNC’s. Walid Shoebat in particular is a fake with an agenda—not just to profit for himself but to advance the theocratic goals of his fundamentalist backers. Chris Rodda, Senior Research Director at the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (a TransNational Advocacy Organization thrice nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize, including this year), did a wonderful expose before and after CNN covered Shoebats’ rather questionable tale. He is unquestionably a front man in the hoax being perpetrated here.  On the Shoebat Foundation website there is a promotion for the visit to a Maryland town by the known fundamentalist extremist and highly controversial Lt. Boykins, and  MRFF has a long history with outing his and his groups actions within our military. Recently, for example, you may recall hearing about the SS-Nazi flag being used by Marines in Afghanistan. MRRF is who reported that. Boykins is a fearmongerer of the worst sort, proclaiming the dangers of Sharia-law, despite our pluralistic commitment to the common right of Religious Freedom. In Oklahoma, where fear of Islam has led to anti-Sharia laws, this message is very popular. There is currently a move in the Oklahoma State Legislature to remove the section of the State Constitution that separates Church and State.  If you were waiting for a state to secede—there you go. If they remove that section of the law, Oklahoma has no commitment to America. Seriously, these people think that the state is in the way of their liberty, that the state taxes by force and that Christ only can rule the world—so their tribe must prepare a way for Him. This may or may not be done at the request of these MNC’s, but the furtherance of our political instability (and therefore that of the Global Economy) can surely be sourced to some of them. Those who mine that fear as a resource most especially. Instability. Good for business.

196 people contribute nearly eighty percent of contributions to Super (!) Political Action Committees, the nefarious and newly thriving approach to influencing domestic politics. Of those 196 people, the five people who contribute the most are responsible for 25% of all giving to SuperPACS. One in particular, Peter Theil (co-founder of PayPal, clearly a MNC), is also a public champion of the SeaSteading Institute, a group which not only promotes but is actively building “sovereign nations” at sea —a chain of libertarian islands, if you will, none of which recognize the vital role of each government in representing the interests of the people they represent, let alone the role of the UN in preventing Global War and Economic Total Meltdown. Hey, good for business. Bad for the worker, but there is plenty of us to go around. The labor force is an underused resource on purpose. That purpose? Instability. Who profits? MNC’s without actual allegiance to a state. Theil is surely laughing at those who are missing the boat, as it were. “…won’t be able to stop us…” I believe is the pull quote from the “TheWeek” article. Likewise, Koch Industry owners Charles and David (failed presidential candidate) Koch share similar views, motives, methods and influence.  The Nation magazine exposed a Employee Voting Guide the company was able to publish under the new Citizens United rules this election year.  This guide, as you may imagine, did not advise the workers to do their own research, and vote their conscience. Their intentions in Wisconsin could not be more clear (protect Scott Walker, end all union influence, strip regulatory power from the government). Their monetary backing of libertarian think tanks and groups like Americans for Prosperity, who preach Tea Party rhetoric like “It’s a spending problem!” and “Close our border!” is legendary, and well-documented. Meanwhile, pushing the same “government is threatening” but “this time to church ‘sovereignty’” arguments are pastors, from the pulpit, preaching “Don’t vote for Obama!”  If Seven Mountains Dominonism is not on your radar by now, here is the briefest of intros: the NAR (New Apostolic Reformation) is a TAN (loose cooperation by Theologically-bound churches) pushing for global return to “Biblical Economics” and using the Seven mountains strategy to achieve “dominion” over the Earth.  The seven mountains are “business, government, media, arts/entertainment, education, family, and religion. Then there are Presidential candidates like Newt Gingrich, who believes “Apology is Surrender!” while Afghanis (angry and without hope for change) burn pictures of our President. This group view is here is one view of the UN, as illegitimate and irrelevant…yet, many of these MNC’s church TAN’s are working politically to keep the loopholes that keep us in debt—then  create groups to complain about debt.  The biblical world view of government is truly that, as in Thessolonians 3:20, “…if a man does not work, he shall not eat.”

The president has called for an end to the speculation that causes high gas prices. Koch Industries owns and operates oil pipelines around the world and so is the largest “provider”, and clearly stands to profit from unfair speculation. Besides, ‘they” (their company, which on the about us page preaches individual responsibility) paid bribes to Iran for secret contracts in violation of law is one very clear example of their conflict. We’ve seen the “Billionaire  Lanes of Election” game, where landed gentry makes high-risk, high-reward bets on who is better prepared to sign off on whatever the Confederate Congress hands him., The SuperPACS move from the economic issues ( until the lane narrows due to modest economic improvement)social issues (this may or may not work) and now military pressure for action in Iran. If we act in Iran ,  Russia or China will profit from our inattention. So will ExxonMobil, and the other three major oil companies. How does that oil get around? Through Koch pipelines. These MNC’ all depend on the American military force to enforce the free trade agreements all share profitability from recognizing. But some MNC’s and TAN’s, as we see, work to push a “stateless” agenda. A final word about MRRF here: their work is invaluable in documenting and fighting back against the rampant and even dominant aggressive proselytizing in the military, most specifically at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado. This is also a TAN, but this “church” is inside our military, acting against our best common interest (unless you do believe, of course, that America was founded as a biblical nation and should return, posthaste, to an extreme version of theonomic law) and possibly planning a American Crystal Night (sovereign citizen/true patriot movement) As it is, we already see churches’ pushing congregates to vote for the starvation of our neighbors. With no civil laws (government ability to regulate contracts) MNC’s will truly rule the world, through their “church” and pressured-voter-sponsored suicidal non-statist philosophy. This brings to mind the Lenin quote: “While the state exists, there can be no freedom. When there is freedom, there will be no state.”  In “Sovereignty at Bay: Globalization, Multinational Enterprise and the International Political System,” Kobrin notes, “It is of interest that from the start the multinational corporation was defined in terms of jurisdiction and potential jurisdictional conflict.” There is clearly some conflict; America is never going to default on her debts, and only some people push the crazy idea that we should. Americans who feel an allegiance to the notion that America must stand as a beacon for all people ought to demand allegiance to the same from those profiting from our (and the Global) instability, and shout down the crazy. How? Tax ‘em. Make them pay allegiance like all who profit from America’s true freedom. And if they refuse their duty? “Break ‘Em Up!”







 

Source citation: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/22/barack-obama-proposing-to_n_1292939.html http://www.abc.net.au/news/2003-12-13/nauru-struck-off-tax-haven-blacklist/105070 http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/spiritual-warfare-public-schools http://www.yuricareport.com/Dominionism/TheDespoilingOfAmerica.htm 

http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/jacobs-benefiel-spend-40-days-laying-spiritual-seige-washington-dc http://www.veterandefenders.org/DECLARATION-RESTORE-THE-CONSTITUTIONAL-REPUBLIC.pdf  http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/08/feds_reportedly_capture_former_marine_oath_keeper.php http://www.militaryreligiousfreedom.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Boykin_Combo_HZ_01-31-12.html  Rodda: CNN to Air Report on Taxpayer ... - Huffington Post http://theweek.com/article/index/218393/libertarian-island-a-billionaires-utopia http://www-management.wharton.upenn.edu/kobrin/Research/Oxford%20rev2%20print.pdf http://www.politico.com/blogs/burns-haberman/2012/02/gingrich-obama-apology-on-quran-burning-a-surrender-115389.html

http://www.newstaco.com/2012/02/08/obama-catholics-and-why-i-walked-out-of-mass-on-sunday/ http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/2/6/132819/8513/Front_Page/Garlow_Introduced_Gingrich_Called_for_Pastors_Revolt_Against_IRS_Rules_at_NAR_Church_in_Nevada http://www.salon.com/2012/02/16/the_196_people_who_will_choose_our_next_president/ http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/story/2012-02-21/super-pac-donors/53196658/1 http://www.scribd.com/doc/53463770/Koch-Industries-Voter-Guide-for-Employees

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2011/8/25/144229/855 http://thinkprogress.org/green/2011/06/06/237542/koch-oil-speculation/ http://www.militaryreligiousfreedom.org/2011/11/111111-major-announcement-mrff-nominated-for-2012-nobel-peace-prize/ http://www.atr.org/obamas-business-tax-reform-hike-disguise-a6739 http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/02/24/1067994/-Koch-fueled-assault-on-Obama-gas-prices-is-self-serving-anti-democracy

 http://www.reclaim7mountains.com/ http://www.thenation.com/article/166421/ron-paul-wants-abolish-cia-his-largest-donor-builds-toys-it   http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-10-02/koch-brothers-flout-law-getting-richer-with-secret-iran-sales.html  ttp://www.shoebat.com/blog/2012/01/23/mayor-invites-general-boykin-to-prayer-breakfast/ http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/30/10273196-extremist-speaker-withdraws-from-west-point-event-after-protests http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/silicon-valley-billionaire-funding-creation-artificial-libertarian-islands-140840896.html http://video.msnbc.msn.com/jansing-and-co/46454372/

 

Article Analysis Assignment

First, read a news story from the newspaper or the Internet.  Answer the following questions regarding your news story: 1) What is the main issue, who are the main actors being discussed;  Then, choose one of the assigned articles you read for this week.  Answer the following questions regarding the assigned article: 1) What are the basics of this article (who, what, when, how, why, etc.);  2) What is the overall main point the author is trying to convince you of?  3) Do you agree with the author’s argument?  Why?  Why not?   Finally, tie together your news story with what you learned from the assigned article, textbook readings, podcasts, videos, etc. for this week.  Type your answers in the box below using your own words, no outline or bullets, complete sentences and paragraphs, single-spaced, full-page.