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Forum Post: The Lost Six Months In 2009 That Still Haunt Us by Roger Boyd,

Posted 8 years ago on Nov. 11, 2016, 7:30 a.m. EST by flip (7101)
This content is user submitted and not an official statement

As President Obama started his first term in office he was provided with the kind of opportunity for real change that progressives had only been able to dream about for nearly a century. The deregulation of the financial industry had been shown to be a huge mistake, and the whole neoliberal project was being openly questioned. He had been elected on a ticket of “hope and change” and would never have a greater chance to be true to his claims of real change. In the 1930’s, then President Roosevelt had used the opportunity of a market and economic crash to tame the financial industry and prosecute many of the worst criminal offenders.

The job of the financial system is to serve the real economy, and it has historically done that well when heavily restricted and heavily regulated to limit the possibility of financial risk taking and abuse. When the bankers are boring the real economy tends to do well, when the bankers are “masters of the universe” the real economy tends to do badly. Making the financial system more “efficient” through deregulation and “innovation” has been seen to provide greater risks for society and the inevitability of greater law breaking. Much of such “innovation” has been in ways to escape regulation, as with the ability to write insurance contracts structured as “credit derivatives” with no oversight from the insurance regulators. The history of the financial system since the start of deregulation after the late 1970’s has been one of one crash after another that has required government rescues – the privatization of risk-driven profits and the socialization of risk-driven losses.

The new President had the chance to return the financial system back to its real purpose and to put an end to needless speculation, and extensive illegality, as President Roosevelt had done in the 1930’s. Instead, he threw the chance away and rescued the bankers without gaining any real change in return. The economic and political power of the banking industry was left in place, together with its ability to live off the real economy. Within a year the executives of Goldman Sachs, that had faced outright bankruptcy, were revelling in the usual huge bonuses. Roosevelt also used the shock of the 1930’s to put in place basic government social support schemes and legal protections for unions. With Democratic majorities in both the Senate and the House, together with the legitimacy of neoliberalism openly being questioned, Obama could have driven through a truly progressive agenda. Real change, rather than just the hope of it.

We are now living with the end result of the failure to take advantage of the historic opportunity of those six months. With Obama’s two terms delivering little or no real benefit to “Main Street”, and the Democratic nominee promising more of the same, the voters looked for a provider of real change. In desperation they picked the fake populist change-agent Trump, a fully paid-up member of the billionaire class. He has committed to further deregulate the financial industry, provide even lower taxes for the rich, bribe corporations to bring jobs back on-shore, and the effective destruction of environmental regulations.

22 Comments

22 Comments


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[-] 1 points by grapes (5232) 8 years ago

Obama was no patrician hit by polio(so that there was a heartfelt mission) as FDR was. Goldman Sachs erected Obama so wasn't it exactly how the truly "All-American" U.S.-manufactured home product supposed to work?

Obama's hand was shaking holding the executive pen so he needed guidance from the financial elites. How else do you think why he could remain so calm when John McCain had suspended campaigning to address the financial collapse in late 2008? Obama had Wall Street connections so he was COOL. Didn't we almost win it all?

Herr Drumpf's hand is developing Parkinson's disease at the prospect of having to hold the executive pen now. Same old, same old. He's well connected to the financial elites as shown by his policies already divulged. Fear not, mine is probably the bloodthirstiest country(》mein Vater heißt Ares《) in the world. I'm sanguine about its prospects, especially with the invincible UNsinkable aircraft carrier U.S.S. Israel that almost sank the U.S.S. Libertine for Elijah. God bless America! Pax Ale-mania.

[-] 1 points by ImNotMe (1488) 8 years ago

''Here is what we need to understand: a hell of a lot of people are in pain. Under Neoliberal policies of deregulation, privatisation, austerity and corporate trade, their living standards have declined precipitously. They have lost jobs. They have lost pensions. They have lost much of the safety net that used to make these losses less frightening. They see a future for their kids even worse than their precarious present.

''At the same time, they have witnessed the rise of the Davos class, a hyper-connected network of banking and tech billionaires, elected leaders who are awfully cosy with those interests, and Hollywood celebrities who make the whole thing seem unbearably glamorous. Success is a party to which they were not invited, and they know in their hearts that this rising wealth and power is somehow directly connected to their growing debts and powerlessness.

''For the people who saw security and status as their birthright – and that means white men most of all – these losses are unbearable.

''Donald Trump speaks directly to that pain. The Brexit campaign spoke to that pain. So do all of the rising far-right parties in Europe. They answer it with nostalgic nationalism and anger at remote economic bureaucracies – whether Washington, the North American free trade agreement the World Trade Organisation or the EU. And of course, they answer it by bashing immigrants and people of colour, vilifying Muslims, and degrading women. Elite neoliberalism has nothing to offer that pain, because neoliberalism unleashed the Davos class. People such as Hillary and Bill Clinton are the toast of the Davos party. In truth, they threw the party.

''Trump’s message was: “All is hell.” Clinton answered: “All is well.” But it’s not well – far from it.'' - from:

e tenebris, lux ...

[-] 1 points by flip (7101) 8 years ago

right on!

[-] 1 points by ImNotMe (1488) 8 years ago

tRUMP got around 27% of all eligible voters, on a ~56% Voter Turnout! Hellary actually won the "popular vote"!! On top of that there's this vid even as I DON'T mourn her well padded ass, because U$A needs to face just wtf can, does and did - happen.. in a Very Crooked Electoral System!!! Now please watch this:

multum in parvo ...

[-] 1 points by flip (7101) 8 years ago

i am wondering about the white male vote. did they come out in larger numbers than 2012 and 2008? can't find those numbers anywhere.did you see the exit poll numbers in north carolina, pennsylvania, wisconsin and florida? and how about this - The system, called Crosscheck, is detailed in my Rolling Stone report, “The GOP’s Stealth War on Voters,” 8/24/2016.

Crosscheck in action:
Trump victory margin in Michigan: 13,107 Michigan Crosscheck purge list: 449,922

Trump victory margin in Arizona: 85,257 Arizona Crosscheck purge list: 270,824

Trump victory margin in North Carolina: 177,008 North Carolina Crosscheck purge list: 589,393

[-] 2 points by ImNotMe (1488) 8 years ago

Voter Suppression; Vote Rigging and Stolen Elections, are HUGE issues in U$A .. no matter whoTF wins!!! US needs to remove electronic voting and reinstate HAND COUNTED PAPER BALLOTS with internal AND EXTERNAL observers!! ASAP! Two excellent journalists on these & other matters - are:

fiat lux et fiat justitia ...

[-] 1 points by Nevada1 (5843) 8 years ago

Yes, paper ballot. Sometimes " the old way is the best way".

[-] 2 points by ImNotMe (1488) 8 years ago

Paper Ballots; Hand Counted & overseen by representatives of all contestants & external observers, is THE Gold Standard of Democracy, imo. Then there's the GOP "Southern Strategy" a' la Lee Atwater & then all round RWNJ and GOP big-wig Paul Weyrich to contend with:

Voter Suppression & Democratic Deficit are big problems in U$A but Corporate MSM just won't face it!

e tenebris, lux ...

[-] 1 points by Nevada1 (5843) 8 years ago

Lee Atwater did a lot of bad things. He died of cancer in 1991. Just before dying, he said he was sorry for the dirty tricks.

[-] 2 points by ImNotMe (1488) 8 years ago

Even as Lee Atwater repented before he died, his techniques & worse are now common place in US (S)Elections. For example .. tRUMP's ''Head Strategist'', Steve Bannon:

fiat lux ...

[-] 1 points by Nevada1 (5843) 8 years ago

good point

[-] 2 points by ImNotMe (1488) 8 years ago

''Standing Rock Protest: hundreds clash with police over Dakota Access Pipeline'', by Julia Carrie Wong:

From which I excerpt ... ''Protesters opposing the controversial pipeline reported being hit with teargas, rubber bullets and percussion grenades during the standoff.''

''Law enforcement officials in North Dakota have deployed tear gas and water hoses against hundreds of activists protesting against the Dakota Access Pipeline.

''Protesters also reported being hit with rubber bullets and percussion grenades on a bridge just north of the encampments established by indigenous and environmental activists in opposition to the controversial pipeline.

'“They were attacked with water cannons,” said LaDonna Brave Bull Allard, a Standing Rock Sioux tribe member and founder of the Sacred Stone camp. “It is 23 degrees [-5 °C] out there with mace, rubber bullets, pepper spray, etc. They are being trapped and attacked. Pray for my people.”

''The Morton County Sheriffs Department described the incident as an “ongoing riot” and described the protestors as “very aggressive”. A spokesman for the sheriffs department said that law enforcement was spraying water because protesters were lighting fires on and around the bridge.''


Appending this to you here because it's a MASSIVELY under-reported issue in USA & because it also goes to the treatment of people of color (this time Native Americans) by the Para-military Police in U$A.

fiat justitia...

[-] 1 points by Nevada1 (5843) 8 years ago

Yes ' MASSIVELY under-reported'. Thank you for bringing this up. Will search for more to post on Occupy.

[-] 2 points by Nevada1 (5843) 8 years ago

Thank you for all the links.

[-] 2 points by ImNotMe (1488) 8 years ago

http://www.freepeltiernow.org/ - as 40 years in jail for an FBI stitch-up is long enough and because .. IF US MSM are now beginning to report the events of Standing Rock, North Dakota .. then you just know shit is getting out of hand! Even the fkn NYT is going to get in on the act!! Now - that The Army Corp of Engineers is trying to shut down the whole thing!!!

[-] 1 points by Shule (2638) 8 years ago

Purge list situation is very interesting, but it would be false to assume white males were the only ones who voted for Trump. Fact is the Hag was so bad, so corrupt, many voters of other backgrounds voted against her. Example; to my understanding Hatians in general did not vote for the Hag because of the nasty things the Clintons did in Haiti. A good part of the regular progressive left did not vote for the Hag because of her thrist for war. Check out Dave Chappell. He as a black man who has no love for the Hag. He opted for Trump. There are many more. There are many women who feel the Hag does not truly represent womanhood. Bottom line is that the evil oligarchy tried to shove the evil Hag down America's throat, and the regular people of America said NO!

[-] 1 points by flip (7101) 8 years ago

all true except that dave voted for the clinot. my point is that white women voted for trump by a slim margin - all other groups voted hillary except white men. i am wondering if white men came out to vote in larger numbers than the past few elections

[-] 1 points by Shule (2638) 8 years ago

No, I really don't think so. there is no reason for white man to get off his butt more in this election than in any other election. I am sure others besides white folk voted for Trump too. Hillary was really that bad.

[-] 1 points by flip (7101) 8 years ago

i agree but but white people are the only ones where he got a majority. no other group was close. i think white women voted 53-47 for him

[-] 1 points by Shule (2638) 8 years ago

Probably so, but 47% is a pretty good share of the woman vote. If the other non-white-male voting folk also voted for trump in some significant share, which some obviously did, that would be plenty enough for a Trump win.

I really don't think this election had much to do with race, but rather the dismal and evil performance of the last administration, and what Hag had in store for us.