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Politics : Proof that John Kerry is Unfit for Command -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Andrew N. Cothran who wrote (16365)	10/7/2004 9:43:24 AM
From: Richnorth	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 27181

Shades of Fascism are beginning to surface in the political landscape. Not? ===================================================== The path to fascism and despotism takes only 10 steps. 1. Powerful and continuing expressions of nationalism. From the prominent displays of flags and bunting to the ubiquitous lapel pins, the fervor to show patriotic nationalism, both on the part of the regime itself and of citizens caught up in its frenzy. 2. Disdain for the importance of human rights. The regimes themselves viewed human rights as of little value and a hindrance to realizing the objectives of the ruling elite. 3. Identification of enemies/scapegoats as a unifying cause. The most significant common thread among these regimes was the use of scapegoating as a means to divert the people’s attention from other problems, to shift blame for failures, and to channel frustration in controlled directions. 4. A controlled mass media. Under some of the regimes, the mass media were under strict direct control and could be relied upon never to stray from the party line. Other regimes exercised more subtle power to ensure media orthodoxy. Methods included the control of licensing and access to resources, economic pressure, appeals to patriotism, and implied threats. The leaders of the mass media were often politically compatible with the power elite. 5. Obsession with national security. Inevitably, a national security apparatus was under direct control of the ruling elite. It was usually an instrument of oppression, operating in secret and beyond any constraints. Its actions were justified under the rubric of protecting “national security,” and questioning its activities was portrayed as unpatriotic or even treasonous. 6. Power of corporations protected. Although the personal life of ordinary citizens was under strict control, the ability of large corporations to operate in relative freedom was not compromised. The ruling elite saw the corporate structure as a way to ensure social control. Members of the economic elite were often pampered by the political elite to ensure a continued mutuality of interests, especially in the repression of “have-not” citizens. Since organized labor was seen as the one power center that could challenge the political hegemony of the ruling elite and its corporate allies, it was inevitably crushed or made powerless. The poor formed an underclass, viewed with suspicion or outright contempt. Under some regimes, being poor was considered akin to a vice. Most of these regimes maintained draconian systems of criminal justice with huge prison populations. The police were often given unchecked power, leading to rampant abuse. “Normal” and political crime were often merged into trumped-up criminal charges and sometimes used against political opponents of the regime. Fear, and hatred, of criminals or “traitors” was often promoted among the population as an excuse for more police power. 9. Rampant cronyism and corruption. Those in business circles and close to the power elite often used their position to enrich themselves. This corruption worked both ways; the power elite would receive financial gifts and property from the economic elite, who in turn would gain the benefit of government favoritism. Members of the power elite were in a position to obtain vast wealth from other sources as well. With the national security apparatus under control and the media muzzled, this corruption was largely unconstrained and not well understood by the general population. 10. Fraudulent elections. Elections in the form of plebiscites or public opinion polls were usually bogus. When actual elections with candidates were held, they would usually be perverted.

To: Andrew N. Cothran who wrote (16365)	10/7/2004 9:50:11 AM
From: Richnorth	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 27181

So much has been said about outsourcing these days that I thought the following article might be of interest to some folks....... ======================================== How 56-year-old Michael Bellington Got Fired by "Saddam Hussein" It's the single biggest threat to American business This warning could save your family fortune… And make you very rich at the same time Dear Reader, "People were trying not to cry," says Michael Bellington. He recalls the scene in his company's boardroom… where he was surrounded by 60 co-workers and 120 replacements. The night before, Bellington got an e-mail, instructing him to show up for a 10 a.m. meeting in the boardroom the next morning. "No way can that be good," he thought. After receiving the e-mail, Bellington checked his company's Internet message board. He found a letter written by someone with the screen name "Saddam Hussein." It read: "Here's what's going to happen tomorrow. Your jobs are gone. At this very moment, your replacements from India are making their way here for training. Your company has chosen them over you." Every word posted by the anonymous "Saddam Hussein" was true. Just like that… gone was Bellington's $76,500-a-year salary (plus an annual bonus). Outsourced to India, where the company could get two workers for the price of one. Of course, Bellington is not alone. IBM recently moved 5,000 jobs to India and China. General Electric, Microsoft, American Express, Continental Airlines, Best Buy, Bank of America, and almost every big company in the U.S. has either already sent work offshore… or is planning to do so soon. In fact, 40% of the 500 biggest companies in America will have outsourced workers overseas by the end of 2004, according to Gartner, Inc. But it's not all bad news. You see, right now there's an easy way to make a lot of money from this trend–whether you have a job or not… or even if you are already retired. In fact, one simple financial move today could return 750% or more over the next few years. And as much as 3,000% over the next decade. If I'm right about this, $10,000 will become $100,000 in the next four years. And you can get started with less than $25. In this report, I'll describe exactly what to do. And I'll show you how to get the details on this opportunity free of charge. Let me get right to it… Where the Money is Really Being Made Right Now The model for U.S. businesses has changed dramatically over the past few decades. In short, most companies no longer make the things they sell. Instead, the work is outsourced, often overseas. Just a few of the U.S. companies outsourcing jobs overseas right now: Ace Hardware Aetna AFLAC Amazon Ann Taylor AOL Apple Computer Aquafina Band Aid Bank of America Best Buy Best Western Boeing CBS Chili's Circuit City Cisco Citibank Coca-Cola Dannon Yogurt Days Inn Dell Delta eBay Epson Evian Federal Express Then came an important decision in 1975. Ampex (an American company with a monopoly on video recording technology) outsourced its work to Japanese companies like Sony and Toshiba. Soon, the Japanese dominated not only the video market, but also many other high-tech businesses too. About 20 years later, IBM made another important outsourcing move. The company sold most of its factories, and today uses dozens of companies around the world to build and assemble IBM products. A company in Toronto, for example, called Celestica, makes most of IBM's big computers used as servers to host Internet websites. The truth is, many of today's high-tech U.S. manufacturing companies don't really manufacture anything at all. They're just brand names. For example… Cisco sells routers, which allow computers to talk to one another, but a company called Flextronics actually designs and builds the things. Palm Pilot sells hand-held computers, but they're actually made by Solectron, in Mexico. Sony's Play Station is actually built by a company called MIPS Technologies. MIPS also makes products for Canon, Motorola, Hewlett Packard, and Pioneer. The offshore outsourcing trend started with manufacturing–but has now made its way into almost every aspect of every business. And the list of offshored jobs grows by the day: computer programmers, accountants, engineers, customer service reps, telemarketers, programmers, mechanics, paralegals, journalists, mortgage brokers, and even radiologists are losing their jobs to foreign workers.