Sticky
National Space Council Meeting (NHQ201806180002)

By:
On:
In: democracy, economics, featured, Government, history, latest post

The Republican Party in the United States has led the way when it comes to drastically lowering the tax rates on the richest Americans. It has come down from some 90% after WW2 to be around the 30 to 40% rate in the current era. Thus, the National Debt of $36 trillion has to be directly impacted by falling tax revenues over decades contributing to the need to borrow to fund government. 36 trillion reasons to despise the GOP and its fundamental role in the economic debt crisis of the US. How can any American justify this huge decrease in taxing the rich at the expense of the country? Republicans have simultaneously been in the vanguard of consistently increasing defence spending over these same decades.Continue Reading

Sticky
Laocoon and the Trojan Horse

By:
On:
In: corruption, democracy, economics, featured, Government, latest post, literature, media, morality, politics, truth

I don’t know if you have ever heard of the Trojan Horse? This is a device contained within the ancient story known as The Iliad. Whether it actually existed is debatable but it has become a popular symbolic metaphor down through the ages. Basically, it was a very large, hand constructed, wooden horse like tower. The story goes that the invading Greeks built it, hopped inside, and had it moved in front of the gates to the city of Troy. Eventually, the Trojans were intrigued enough to move it inside their city gates and later that night the Greeks snuck out and opened the gates for their army – final outcome the fall of Troy. Why someone would want a bloody big wooden horse structure, I don’t know. There are reasons given that the Trojans thought that it might be a gift from the gods. ‘Beware of Greeks bearing gifts’ – is one of many sayings to emerge subsequent to the reading of this chapter of The Iliad. What is today’s Trojan Horse?Continue Reading

Sticky
Free School Athens Raphael image

By:
On:
In: democracy, economics, featured, Government, history, latest post

Oligarchies have been around for a very long time in modern terms. The word itself comes from the ancient Greeks, like many of our words for social structures and types of government. What can we do about the oligarchs? Oligarchy versus democracy was first billed as a clash of governing systems some 3 millennia ago in Athens. The original Greek oligarchies were based on class and wealth, as the two most often went hand in hand. Democracy came about as a means to break the grip of noble families on governing Athens, the city state. This new expansionary form of government spread to other Greek city states.Continue Reading

Sticky
white bus on road near in high rise building during daytime

By:
On:
In: democracy, economics, featured, Government, latest post

Do you know who is driving the bus? By this I mean, who is leading our societies and who is making the important decisions that we all follow? It is not the obvious candidates and by this I refer to the politicians. Business leaders make the decisions which effect our lives and livelihoods. These profit driven CEOs are laser focused on the bottom line for their companies and shareholders. A major shift has occurred over the last 35 years, where workers and consumers have been shunted to the back of the queue and shareholders have become everything to companies under the guidance of their boards and CEOs.Continue Reading