Wall Street Dominos Start to Fall

The Associated Press reports that Bears Sterns hedge fund managers

Ralph Cioffi and Matthew Tannin were accused of encouraging investors to stay in their hedge funds, heavily exposed to subprime mortgages, even as they knew the credit market was in serious trouble.

AP puts this in the context of wider action...

The arrests came as the Justice Department in Washington announced the indictments of more than 400 players in the real-estate industry since March in a crackdown on mortgage fraud. Sixty were arrested on Wednesday alone.

It's hard to say this is honest justice when we know that the system and culture is corrupt to the core. We saw similar actions of "justice" when Enron, Arthur Anderson and others were in the spot light... but there doesn't seem to be a deterrent effect.

It has been noted that "if it pays, it plays" in regard to illegal activity. In addition to jail time, we need to focus on getting the money back that has been stolen. If that means liquidating big player corporations, and paying off the workers who will have to find new jobs, then so be it.

The corporate elite has robbed us every decade via a system that allows it. When John Edwards becomes the next Attorney General, we need to pressure him to change the system. That will be a true test of Obama's mouthing of the word "change."

Sources:

Associated Press, 2 charged on Wall Street in mortgage meltdown, June 19, 2008.

Obama the Nominee

It was odd to see the headlines yesterday, "Obama Clinches Nomination; Clinton Seeks VP Spot."

I can't say whether or not this was widely voiced by the establishment media (I try to avoid that media), but it was a Yahoo! News headline.

Here's what I've urged Obama to do. You can Contact Obama too:

Please do NOT put H. Clinton on the ticket. She is very divisive, even if it's not her fault.

DO offer John Edwards the Attorney General position. Let him gather evidence on Bush et al. for future prosecution. The Nation cannot accept impunity if it is to survive in the long run.

Prosecute Bush et. al., Chapter 1 [3-min Video]

Will Edwards Prosecute Bush?

You might have heard it here first.... The call for John Edwards to be Attorney General.

Now we're hearing reports, like the following:

Another Democrat who has discussed strategy with friends in the Obama inner circle said that Mr Obama was openly considering asking Mrs Clinton to join his cabinet, alongside two other former presidential rivals: John Edwards, who is seen as a likely attorney general...

This notion was raised in my first video commentary: Prosecute Bush et al., Chapter 1

Support Edwards in Iowa Caucus

A Zogby poll shows John Edward tied with Barack Obama at 26 percent gaining on Hillary Clinton who is at 30 percent. This is confirmed by a CNN poll and a new Strategic Vision poll, released Friday, showing Edwards at 28 percent.

"Edwards had a good day by virtue especially of increasing support among independent voters," Zogby said.

Edwards led narrowly among independents over Clinton and Obama, I believe, because Edwards is NOT from the corporate wing of the Democratic party.

According to a Politico essay, other signs of hope boost Edwards' chances in Iowa:

Edwards also comes into the Jan. 3 caucuses with particular advantages... Edwards’ campaign boasts the most deeply rooted rural operation, allowing it to possibly win small precincts across the state that could prove crucial in the final tally.

Politico continues to point out that this is buttressed in

Polling by The Washington Post [which has] found that Edwards has the most support among those voters who participated in the 2004 Democratic caucuses, no small advantage for an election that measures a high turnout at 120,000 participants statewide.

Another advantage identified by Politico...

When Democrats were asked in the poll what mattered to them in deciding their vote, 32 percent said ideology, 30 percent chose charisma and 21 percent selected experience.

Clinton has campaigned on her experience, and if the election turns on ideology and charisma, it would seem to favor Obama and Edwards.

You Can Help Edwards Peak in Iowa on Jan. 3

1. Boost the Buzz with an e-mail to Iowa Media Outlets:

Contact the Des Moines Register to ... er, register your support of Edwards. There's nothing like a public outpouring to turn the heads of editors. Here's what I said:

Edwards is gaining ground. I support Edward because he's talking about "deep change," not superficial, corporate-sponsored "change."

Our Nation is faltering. We need a break from the status quo.

Thanks

2. Pledge Your Support:

Women of Steel Pledge - CLICK to sign a pledge of support. United Steel Workers pledge page allows you to do as little as state your support, or more.

3. Contact the Edwards Campaign for More Ways to Help:

Iowa Edwards Campaign:
515-288-0766

4. Let the Iowa Democratic Party Know you Support Edwards:

They're likely to pass you on to the Edwards Campaign, BUT, calls coming into the Democratic Party will add to buzz that adds to the momentum for Edwards.

Iowa Democratic Party:
515-244-7292

Get Engaged via Edwards' Web Page:

Here's the Link to his Iowa page... the main page, and contribution page, are easy to find. Every $250 dollars is matched with public funds because Edwards has gone the public funding route.

Sources:

Reuters, "Clinton leads in Iowa but Edwards gains," John Whitesides, December 31, 2007.

Edwards Leads Poll in Iowa

According to MSN,

In an InsiderAdvantage poll in Iowa, Edwards leads among (977) likely voters 30-26-24 over Clinton and Obama. Edwards is also the clear second choice winner, 42-29-28 over Clinton and Obama.

More...

Obama and Edwards on Trade

We know where the corporatist Hilary Clinton stands on "free" trade; if it promotes more freedom of transnational corporations, and their human quislings, to exploit humans, then that's OK with her. She still buys into "a rising plutocratic tide raises all boats."

But, what about Edwards and Obama, people for whom you might actually consider voting? David Mizner, of MyDD (Direct Democracy) lays it out for us in "Edwards Seizes His Winning Issues." In short, Edwards is true to the "Fair Trade" values and Obama is not.

This should come as no surprise. Clinton and Obama are of the corporate wing of the Democratic Party. That's all you should need to know about those two candidates to make your decision in 2008.

Mizner poses a practical and tangible test on whether Obama is true to his rhetoric about "fair trade." He establishes Edwards' opposition to Peru Trade Pact. Then Mizner suggests we watch Obama's vote on the Pact.

Why not go one step further. Contact Obama and urge him to vote against the Peru Trade deal?

Contact Obama. You can repeat what I told him (cut 'n paste):

Please vote AGAINST the Peru Trade Pact. Why? It's written by and for corporations, not humans. The labor and environmental protections are window dressing.

Pandering Edwards Showing True Colors?

A little while back I did a broad side on John Edward's speech to a conference in Herzliya, Israel. (Before that, I was heaping praise).

Maybe he's just a politician playing both sides, but I found this of interest. But this tid bit is making its rounds on the blogosphere, from Peter Bart's Variety column January 19, 2007. Writing about Hollywood politics, Bart describes an encounter John Edwards had at a recption hosed by "Adam Venit, a honcho at Endeavor":

The aggressively photogenic John Edwards was cruising along, detailing his litany of liberal causes last week until, during question time, he invoked the "I" word -- Israel. Perhaps the greatest short-term threat to world peace, Edwards remarked, was the possibility that Israel would bomb Iran's nuclear facilities. As a chill descended on the gathering, the Edwards event was brought to a polite close.

If the event is described fairly, it says as much about the crowd as it does Edwards. We should be concerned about an Israeli attack, and Iranian potential response. According to Zbigniew Brzezinski's testimony to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Februray 1, 2007, Edwards is right:

A plausible scenario for a military collision with Iran involves Iraqi failure to meet the benchmarks [that is, Bush's surge fails]; followed by accusations of Iranian responsibility for the failure; then by some provocation in Iraq or a terrorist act in the U.S. blamed on Iran; culminating in a “defensive” U.S. military action against Iran that plunges a lonely America into a spreading and deepening quagmire eventually ranging across Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan.

Edwards: A Man of the People

The people of America are fortunate to have a true leader, like Edwards, take on the challenge of running for president. Edwards speakes truth to power, which is refreshing in this era of corporate plutocratic dominance.

He will be challenged as "protectionist" and worse by the powers-that-be, starting with those in the Democratic Party.

He deserves the working-people's support, if only to send a clear message to the corporate and political elite: "We're here. Ignore us at your own fate."

Edwards Speaks Truth to Power

True, like other national candidates under that have to contend with the potential of unwarranted corporate media feeding frenzies, Edward has to be cautious about what he says. However, unlike most candidates, he is the best at speaking truth to power.

Edwards is a populist in the finest tradition described best by Lawrence Goodwyn. This is a tradition of true participatory democracy, contrary to negative connotations placed on the word "populist" by some historians (the chairs of which were probably funded by plutocrats).

The policy underpinnings of populist movements rest on an understanding and appreciation of economic forces. It isn't a sterile view of economics as the center of the world, rather it views economics in its proper role relative to other social aspects of our world, family, self-respect independent of monetary standing, appreciation of natural wonders, artistic expression, genuine compassion. The spirit of this view is what Martin Luther King would later call a “sense of somebodiness.” It views economics as an engine that can enable social aspirations, not as an end in itself.

One of the greatest taboos in society today is to challenge corporate globalization, founded on neo-liberal, free market, Washington consensus economic theory. Edwards has taken a stand in opposition to corporate globalization. He knows it is a naive view of economics at best, and a cynical power grab of the worlds resources by a plutocracy at worst. Evidence suggests the later is true, though many half-informed peopled are enamored by the supposed theoretical underpinnings of free market fundamentalism, such as the notion of comparative advantage, introduced by David Ricardo.

By challenging this taboo subject head-on, Edwards is speaking truth to power. If for no other reason, Edwards deserves the distinction of being called a true leader.