Working Life

Back in the first half of the 20th Century, there was a big vibrant union, the United Electrical Workers, the UE. It had 100,000s of members—until the McCarthy era anti-communist hysteria swept the country, triggering eviscerating attacks against the UE by the government, companies and other labor unions. Today, the union is still one of […]

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And here is why, explained in this short video, by yours truly.  

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Trillions of dollars lost, pensions ravaged, retired people who can’t pay to stay in retirement homes, peoples’ futures wrecked…that was so financial crisis days, huh?

But, if there is ever a moment to remember what a very stupid idea privatizing Social Security is, and why Bernie Sanders’ plan to expand and strengthen Social Security is so important, this is it. A teachable moment.

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I am sort of used to the foolishness spewed by the transcribers of press releases (formerly known as “journalists) when it comes to Social Security. “The sky is falling, the sky is falling” is roughly the hysteria pouring out of their mouths. But, well, it’s important to keep after them because, well, ten people still listen to Fred Hiatt at the Washington Post

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In case you didn’t notice, your taxes went up at the beginning of 2013–and you probably didn’t notice. Nor did most of the country. And that’s a good thing for Social Security

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First things first: I am not at all shocked or surprised by the stupidity flowing from the White House. If you are, you have not been paying attention for the past 5-6 years, or you’ve engaged in willful denial. But, the moronic, and immoral, proposals on Social Security do give us a wonderful moment of clarity about politics and the press.

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It’s a funny thing, though obvious, that when you actually look at all the hand-wringing about budget shortfalls and Social Security funding, it always comes down to the same issue: are the richest among us going to pay their fair share, or are they going to continue to be part of a legalized robbery that drains the wealth of the country into the hands of a few, while the burden increase on most hard-working Americas? So, it is with Social Security.

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False equivalency rages through the political rhetoric, fanned by the transcribers of press releases (formerly known as “journalists”). No one seems able to call bullshit on what is transparently nonsense. To wit.

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Enough already. Yours truly would really like to be able to stop being a monitor of the transcribers of press releases (formerly known as “journalists”). But, I can’t help point out outright falsehoods, especially when it comes to economics and Social Security.

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I write often about the transcribers of press releases (formerly known as “journalists”). Every day, I am ashamed of the profession I generally am associated with — lazy, stupid, ideologically blind. It’s not an idle annoyance — the absolutely bankruptcy of most of the traditional press ends up costing lives, not that the transcribers of press releases understand this. Which brings me to the shameful article by Robert Pear.

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