Comments on: Growing Poverty and Despair in America

By: Kathleen King

Kathleen King — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 21:10:55 +0000

Thank you for the article. America needs to be reborn, and it starts at home with strong family units as they were many years ago. Both in times of prosperity and total crisis strong American families pulled us through or reaped the rewards. Strong families built strong communities and a strong nation. The demise of the family unit starting in the late 50′s has been the downfall of this country. The support, caring and sharing of a close family will get them through the worst of times. As the unit disappeared, so did many of the businesses that provided work and hope for many. Farming was once an honorable occupation, and people were proud to work in manufacturing as well. The majority of these started as family businesses, but then Americans got lazy after some good years and started selling out, sending their business overseas, and only wanting to work white collar jobs. And now, how many businesses left are actually in the USA and run by families? Not too many.
The same goes for farming. Where do the tomatoes, or beans or other produce you buy come from? Very few from America unless you can afford to pay top dollar. The added costs of shipping our older folks off to assisted living or nursing homes has burdened us further. We used to make them feel needed by giving them jobs to do at home, and now we all have to have “Our own space”. Americans need to start taking care of their own once again and the results would be a stronger America with less poverty, less hunger and less homelessness. Stop interfering with the way other countries want to live or run their governments. Who gave us the job of telling others how to live? We need to take care of our own first.

By: Jeff

Jeff — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 23:58:21 +0000

Personally, I have absolutely no “trust” concerning this ‘Agatha’. You are so sweet in your belligerent BS ‘Agatha’. Bash me all, all whom should you desire. “Lamb available Wolf”.

By: Gracchus Babeuf

Gracchus Babeuf — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 18:16:47 +0000

You all make very good points, but It is true that the only way to combat poverty would be a radical redistrubution of wealth, in order to create a very comprehensive welfare state like one that existed in 1960′s USSR or Western Europe. The Middle class won’t disappear, since they act as a buffer against the working class. If you share the spoils of capitalism with a few frontmen, you make them loyal and complacent. I believe you can’t destroy the working class, until machines can do every type of labor. They also make up 55% percent of the US population. The greatest invention is the “American Dream”. Which tries to make class irrelevant with it’s blatant lie of unlimited social mobility. As George Carlin would say “It’s called a dream, since you have too be asleep to believe it.” Until the people of America shed out of the snake skin of Americana we will be able to create a new and stable regime dedicated more so to human needs.

By: rabblevox

rabblevox — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 04:01:59 +0000

@ Agatha:

“I have often read that the demise of U.S. middle class was a planned and orchestrated event. I’ve read many articles regarding this.”

You should read “The Shock Doctrine” by Naomi Klein

The demise of the working class is indeed planned, and she spells it out in disturbing detail.

By: Deadbeat

Deadbeat — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 23:48:10 +0000

Kudos to Lendman for raising the plight of the homeless. Despite many who openly state that Health Care should be a human right I don’t understand why they don’t take the same stance for housing. Homelessness has been a major problem for the past 30 years and Reagan and the Democrats make huge cuts to Section 8 housing which is sorely needed. Unfortunately it was rhetorically cast as a benefit to “minorities” and thus there was popular support to cut these programs. Now with the foreclosure and joblessness crisis, Section 8 housing is sorely needed and should be promoted as a human right.

Great article!

By: Shabnam

Shabnam — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 17:31:14 +0000

Very good Agatha. I wish more Americans wake up and strike a unity among themselves soon, against a corrupt elite where their existence depend on destruction of people’s lives and their societies. We must demand from Obama immediate return of all troops and end to the phony ‘war on terror.’ We must be united against the establishment of ‘WORLD GOVERMENT.’

By: Agatha

Agatha — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 17:01:50 +0000

I also just want to say, that I find this site very good. I am coming in here more and more. I will spread the news….although, unfortunately, where I live people do not seem interested. I think that is why I start hanging out on net more and more. I get starved for real news, real debate, and other people that share my concerns.

I recently was layed off from my old job. The new job I have is a temporary job and I make about half as much as other job. This is how it is now. Of course, I still have to pay same price for everything. So, I only buy what is needed now. Maybe there is lesson in all of this for all of us. Don’t get sucked into the credit circus. The Banking system is so corrupt. And the problem is stated by Obama in a nutshell: ‘we have to save the banks to save our industry’. Nothing could be further from the truth but most Americans believe this. We are so conditioned into thinking it is only the Biggest Institutions that can save us all. When in reality we are the ones that have to save ourselves.

By: Agatha

Agatha — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 16:56:00 +0000

I have often read that the demise of U.S. middle class was a planned and orchestrated event. I’ve read many articles regarding this. The one thing that keeps me thinking that this is most logical explanation for everything that is currently happening, from 911 to Iraq to economic theft by those in high places, is that its so systematic and organized. Its like it all is happening not in a haphazard way at all. The full impact of what the world oligarchic class has in store is just now coming to fruit. What will it be like one year from today? Or five years? The precision and detail going into this is the biggest clue. I believe soon the dollar will be wiped out and then people will know that there is going to be no improvement. Its strange how people in my community still believe this is temporary. I keep saying I don’t think so, but they appear bored. I am not a great speaker, something I always wished I had. It is good public speakers we need very badly. Writing is great, but so many do not read anymore. We need a few great public speakers, who do not fear the oligarchs.

By: Don Hawkins

Don Hawkins — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 19:17:06 +0000

I forgot Glenn beck said the other night something that most people will not do just yet. He said that there are a lot of reasons that climate change is not real and even if it is there is nothing we can do about it. Now just on the off chance the smartest minds we have now are right get ready for homelessness on a grand scale in only a few years and that will be Worldwide. I must say this Beck fellow seems to have no problem on deciding what the human race should think. I wonder does Fox News do that to you you know if you work there? I know he doesn’t like other people to think that we should even try much much to hard for his thinking. I don’t know maybe makes for great laugh’s at a dinner party or two and a few close friends. Must be a real Rush to make those kind of decisions or does he just say that stuff for something called ratings in the World of fair and balanced?

By: Don Hawkins

Don Hawkins — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 18:23:04 +0000

ESTES PARK, Colo. (AP) — Global warming is threatening America’s national parks. But there is no consensus about how to prevent the harm.

Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona and Democratic Sen. Mark Udall of Colorado toured Rocky Mountain National Park Monday then heard testimony from parks officials and scientists about how global warming is harming the park system.

Glacier National Park, for example, is losing its glaciers, while low-lying coastal parkland is in danger of going underwater.

On Monday’s tour, the senators were shown dying pine trees infected by beetles spreading as temperatures warm in the Rocky Mountains.

Herbert Frost, associate director for natural resource stewardship and science for the National Park Service, said climate change could be the most “far-reaching and consequential challenge in our history.”

No consensus about how to prevent the harm and in our history the last time I checked the harm seems to be Worldwide. I wonder any begging in public places on this no consensus. Oh they don’t beg they make suggestions and pay no attention to the man behind the curtain waving his or her check book. I watch Glenn Beck and this health care bill then climate change is not Socialism but communism and everything was going so well. I think that’s what Beck said yesterday it’s hard to keep up with his thinking sometimes all those charts and lines leading in different directions. Follow the money Glenn follow the money in Clowntown USA. I still think reason, knowledge, working together to face the biggest problems the human race has ever faced but that’s just one idea. Probably much to simple.

By: Don Hawkins

Don Hawkins — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 17:57:58 +0000

Thank God Wall Street and the Bank’s are OK now. It had to be done just hold your nose and watch those Local ordinances prohibit sleeping, camping, eating, sharing food, sitting, loitering, and/or begging in public places. Let’s see the health care bill then Climate change bill I wonder any begging in public places in DC or sharing going on. Well not in the Hall’s of Congress I’ll tell you.