January 2, 2016

CNN: "Sanders flies coach, social media says he's first class" ... Cool Pics

Sanders flies coach, social media says he's first class
By Gregory Krieg, CNN * December 29, 2015 * CNN

(CNN)Bernie Sanders' supporters have launched a social media campaign highlighting their candidate's frequent appearances on commercial airlines.

While almost all of the presidential hopefuls have on occasion traveled alongside — or in between — passengers in coach, Sanders is the one most likely to pop up in your feed killing time before his boarding call.

For a look, simply dial up #SandersOnAPlane on Twitter or Facebook and behold.

This image below, which has been floating around online for at least a month, comes with a call by user @destroyamber to "spread as many images as we can of [Sanders] flying coach."




There's a bunch more pics of Bernie flying coach at the link:
http://www.cnn.com/2015/12/29/politics/bernie-sanders-on-a-plane/index.html

January 2, 2016

Is Sanders "courting" Racists and Nazis? Hell No!

Is Sanders "courting" Racists and Nazis? Hell No!
By WB Reeves * Saturday Jan 02, 2016 * Daily Kos

Let’s get one thing straight from the get go. There is only one way to court racists and bigots: that’s by pandering to their racism and bigotry.

It’s an important point to keep in mind going forward, since there is now a meme being pushed that argues ... that by suggesting that some Trump supporters might be attracted to some of his economic and anti-establishment positions Bernie Sanders is courting racists and even,believe it or not, Nazis.

It seems that “courting” racists and bigots now includes articulating the belief that an appeal to the broadest shared interest can overcome the divisive appeals of racism, sexism and homophobia. In other words, that telling white people that they are being played for suckers by appeals to racism and that they would be better off making common cause with their fellow citizens of every race, creed or color, is actually an appeal to racist sentiments.

At least that would seem to be the reasonable conclusion to draw from those who’ve been assailing Sanders for this suggestion. Stripped of its emotional demagogy, that is essentially the complaint: that Sanders is attempting to draw people away from Trump’s racist snake oil with his economic message and that is, somehow, a bad thing.

If the argument seems to strain credulity, I suspect that is because it is actually fueled by fear. Not a baseless, imaginary fear but one grounded in historical experience.

~snp~

Unlike a lot of folks,I do have first hand knowledge and experience of people who have recovered from being virulent racists. I’m talking about people who had been sucked into the most extreme forms of white racism and white supremacy; KKK, Nazi Skinheads, etc. In every instance such people were salvaged by confronting them with the fact that they had shared interests with the very people they were indoctrinated to hate.

I have a hard time imagining that the average Trump supporter is any worse than they were. ... Sanders isn’t appealing to anyone on the basis of bigotry or racism.
http://www.dailykos.com/stories/2016/1/2/1465446/-Is-Sanders-courting-Racist-and-Nazis-Hell-No

January 1, 2016

Unsettling 2015 Factoid: "Value of gun manufacturers' stocks almost doubled in 2015"

Value of gun manufacturers' stocks almost doubled in 2015

by Jana Kasperkevic * December 31, 2015 * The Nation

Stock markets around the world closed down on the last trading day of 2015, with the Dow suffering its first annual drop since 2008. But for the two largest stock market-listed gun manufacturers 2015 has been another great year – their value has doubled.

In a year marred with gun violence and peppered with calls for tougher gun control measures, Smith & Wesson and Sturm, Ruger and Company have been two of the best performing stocks in the US.

Over the year Smith & Wesson rose from $9.47 to $21.98. Sturm, Ruger and Company rose from $34.63 to $59.61. It’s not just 2015 that has been good for gun stocks. Over the past five years, stocks of Smith & Wesson increased in value sixfold while stocks of Sturm, Ruger and Company quadrupled in value.

By comparison, Apple stock remained almost unchanged over the past year and only doubled in value over the past five years, reaching about $105 a share this year compared with $46 in 2010.

Netflix, which has been named as one of the best performing stocks of 2015, performed as well as the US gun companies – more than doubling in value over the past 12 months and growing by 464% over the past five years, reaching $114 a share on Thursday compared with $25 in 2010.

http://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/dec/31/value-of-gun-manufacturers-stocks-almost-doubled-in-2015

December 30, 2015

US mass incarceration problems continued to worsen in 2014.

America’s Incarcerated Population, Largest in World, Grew Even More Last Year
Zaid Milani * Dec. 30 2015 * The Intercept

The federal government’s Bureau of Justice Statistics has released new numbers detailing how America’s incarcerated population — already the world’s largest — grew even bigger in 2014.

The bureau’s researchers report that the number of individuals incarcerated grew by 1,900 people over the course of last year — “reversing a 5-year decline since 2008.”

It’s not all bad news, though. The researchers also report that there was a decrease in overall adults supervised by the correctional systems — meaning included in community supervision or parole. In 2014, there were “about 52,200 fewer offenders than at yearend 2013.”

Their report found that just seven jurisdictions “accounted for almost half of the U.S. correctional population at yearend 2014,” with Texas topping the list with 699,300 offenders. Overall, “about 1 in 36 adults in the United States was under some form of correctional supervision at yearend 2014.”

Numerous explanations have been offered for this high rate of incarceration. As The Intercept reported earlier this month, one private prison executive offered his own theory at a recent investment bankers conference.

“The reality is, we are a very affluent country, we have loose borders, and we have a bad education system,” said Shayn March, a vice president at private prison firm Geo Group. “And all that adds up to a significant amount of correctional needs, which, thankfully, we’ve been able to help the country out with and states with by providing a lower cost solution.”
https://theintercept.com/2015/12/30/americas-incarcerated-population-largest-in-world-grew-even-more-last-year/

December 28, 2015

Killed ISIS Commander’s Cell Phone Shows Direct Ties To Turkish Intelligence

It's this kind of nefarious crap going on between our supposed "allies" and ISIS that convinces me, in part, of the wisdom and importance of Sanders' policy positions re ISIS and the Middle East. That reference to another such instance involving Canada is a little confusing though, as I'm not sure what it's based on, or how similar that was to this.

http://www.mintpressnews.com/killed-isis-commanders-cell-phone-shows-direct-ties-to-turkish-intelligence/212317/

December 27, 2015

Hillarian Outrage on full display: "Oh Noes! Bernie's courting Trump supporters"

Hllarians are outraged that a 'socialist' candidate has the audacity to actually educate the
'little people' to start actually voting in their own best interests. Imagine that.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1251&pid=949930

How dare Sanders help defuse a racist blowhard's popularity among the 'little people' by
redirecting misplaced hatred away from racial minorities, and towards Wall Street crooks
and MIC war profiteers, where it rightfully belongs.

Just who does this Sanders guy think he is anyway? The next President or something?

December 27, 2015

But, but .. "Americans would NEVER elect a Democratic Socialist as President!!!!!"

December 25, 2015

Sanders promotes equality, Trump promotes hate

I absolutely love this compare & contrast piece re: Bernie & tRump, especially because it eloquently explodes the M$M's annoying habit of sliming Bernie with repeated off-handed insinuations re "The similarities between the Sander and Trump campaigns"; while otherwise ignoring Sanders campaign altogether.

Sanders promotes equality, Trump promotes hate
By Brent Budowsky * December 24, 2015 * The Hill

In my previous Contributors piece, I cited a Quinnipiac poll that showed Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) running ahead of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump by the landslide magnitude margin of 13 percentage points. Today, we take this analysis to the next level and consider how Sanders and Trump represent different visions of America and different visions of American politics.

Sanders is a powerful leader and visionary of progressive politics who is historically descended from presidents such as Theodore Roosevelt and Franklin Roosevelt. Sanders is the happy warrior of American politics who rejects personal attacks and negative campaigning in his politics and seeks to build coalitions of common interests behind policies of economic fairness, justice and equality.

Trump is a bitterly divisive figure in American politics who is historically descended from Sen. Barry Goldwater (R-Ariz.), who ran an ultra-right candidacy in 1964 that led Republicans to a historic landslide defeat, and Trump is also descended from President Richard Nixon, who believed in creating enemies lists and slandering political opponents (who, by the end of his presidency, included virtually everyone in America).

While Sanders is the happy warrior who cheerfully takes his case of economic equality and fairness to the nation, seeking to build a majority coalition for his policies of change we can believe in, Trump is the angry man of American politics who campaigns with vicious words and bizarre facial contortions as he angrily attacks the individuals and groups he showers with scorn and derision every day.

As Sanders said on CNN Thursday morning, Trump "[plays] off the anxiety and the fears" of Americans and scapegoats minority groups and "then [tries] to get us to hate Mexicans or to hate Muslims" — and Sanders used the word "hate," as have some principled conservatives who have called Trump a fascist. I have never used the word "fascist" to describe Trump, and do not so so here, but the fact that some Republican conservatives have begun to describe Trump this way is a sign of how far Trump has moved from the politics of civility and mutual respect that is the American political tradition.

Sanders is inclusive, trying to bring voters together by lifting voters up behind a shared interest in economic equality. Trump is bitterly divisive, trying to pit groups of Americans against each other and make America what Abraham Lincoln warned would be a "house divided against itself.

MORE (a very good read): http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/presidential-campaign/264187-sanders-promotes-equality-trump-promotes-hate

December 25, 2015

How & When to Vote for Bernie Sanders: State-by-State Summary

A cool US map, showing how to make sure you can vote for Bernie in each state's primary. There's also
a place to sign-up to receive notice of any unforeseen changes in election rules that states may adopt.

http://voteforbernie.org

December 25, 2015

How & When to Vote for Bernie Sanders: State-by-State Summary

A cool US map, showing how to make sure you can vote for Bernie in each state's primary. There's also
a place to sign-up to receive notice of any unforeseen changes in election rules that states may adopt.

http://voteforbernie.org