Capitalism

$47 Trillion – the ripoff by the rich and corporations – in two charts – maybe a few more…..

I was already 31 years old when the rip-off of America began in 1979. I was busy, and the changes in American life were only occasionally to be noticed.  By the mid-1980s my management life started to feature the early signs of the financialization of the corporation. I knew of —>> read more –>>

Capitalism

What is $47 trillion – 47,000,000,000,000 – a comparative exploration?

My previous post, “$47 Trillion – the ripoff by the rich and corporations – in two charts – maybe a few more…..” raises the question of exactly what 47,000,000,000,000 amounts to. There are so many “0”s! Let’s work with a one-dollar US paper bill. So how many dollar bills do —>> read more –>>

Politics

Trump + 18 Others Indicted on Racketeering in Georgia

What More Needs To Be Said? 91 Felony Crimes Charged Trump has now been indicted for 91 different felony crimes spanning his four indictments to date. 34 counts for the Stormy Daniels NY state hush-money case, 40 in the Federal classified documents case, 4 in the Federal Jan. 6th case, —>> read more –>>

Politics

Insurrection + the 14th Amendment = disqualify Trump?

insurrection ĭn″sə-rĕk′shən noun 1. The act or an instance of open revolt against civil authority or a constituted government. 2. A rising up; uprising. 3. The act of rising against civil authority or governmental restraint; specifically, the armed resistance of a number of persons to the power of the state; —>> read more –>>

Empire

Our Empire, National Priorities, and the Iraq War revisited

Recently I came across the Summer 2023 issue of Jacobin (self-described as “a leading voice of the American left, offering socialist perspectives on politics, economics, and culture.”). The lead article is “The Iraq Invasion Twenty Years Later“. This reminded me of all the lies and posturing that led up to —>> read more –>>

Technology

“NO AI SCRAPING without explicit permission from author”

I’ve been publishing my research and opinion pieces on the web for over twenty years. Since Fall 2017, here on AmericanDelusions.com. The topics have ranged from family events and local hometown matters to a wide range of topics in economics, capitalism, politics, society, the environment, and more. All of this —>> read more –>>

Politics

“Let the customers know you’re a bigot”

I ran across this letter to the editor in the July 6th edition of The Columbia Paper concerning the recent Supreme Court ruling in 303 Creative v. Elenis (from NYTimes: “Supreme Court Backs Web Designer Opposed to Same-Sex Marriage“) allowing businesses to discriminate against people based on religious views. This —>> read more –>>

Politics

What do you love about the US Constitution?

Recently I’ve noticed bumper stickers, mostly on pickup trucks, calling out a love for the Constitution. What do I love about the Constitution? Rural states with tiny populations automatically control the Senate. The ten least populous states have a total population of 9.6 million. California, the most populous state, has —>> read more –>>

Human Nature

Explaining Trump – tribal mismatch – a podcast

Trump received 74 million votes in 2020. This amazed and upset me a lot. The ongoing global warming crisis and the exhaustion of earth’s resources continue to arouse my concerns about our future. I wrote a longish essay on the subject in early 2022. Here is the positioning statement from —>> read more –>>

Technology

AI an Existential Threat? – a suggestion for more immediate action…..

This is a reprint from UNDARK: AI Creators Want Us to Believe AI Is an Existential Threat. Why? June 22, 2023 by Ryan Calo The warning consisted of a single sentence: “Mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority alongside other societal-scale risks such as pandemics —>> read more –>>

Capitalism

The Waterworks of Money – how money and the financial sector work

  By chance, I saw an exhibition titled “The Future of Money” (thru 9.9.2023) at the Art Museum of The Hague, Netherlands in May 2023. The central work is a very large drawing that illustrates the flows of money through the economy. Now there is a video tour of this —>> read more –>>

Politics

Reading Trump Indictment 2 – the Mar-a-Lago document case

Following comments in the media that the indictment document was “a readable narrative” as opposed to a dull legal document, I downloaded it for a read-through. Here is a link to the indictment “USA vs Trump & Nauta“. The first 27 pages of 49 provide a detailed narrative. In fact —>> read more –>>