Archive
Progressive Breakfast - 9/28/2009
The daily Progressive Breakfast serves up what progressive movement members need to know to start their day. Public Option Vote Expected Tomorrow in Senate Finance Cmte NYT reports Sen. Reid won't include public option in bill presented to full Senate: "Democratic...
G20 Conclusions: Good If Implemented, Not Ignored
Here is a wrap-up on the G20 Summit. On the ground: The thing that stands out in my mind from actually being in Pittsburgh while the summit took place is the way the city reacted. The city was literally deserted, buildings were barricaded as if the Chinese or Russian...
The Morality of Health Care Reform, Pt. 5
"The fundamental truth about health care in every country is that national values, national character, determine how each system works." Prof. Uwe Reinhardt, Princeton Professor & Health Care Economist "I think health care is a privilege. I wouldn't call it a right."...
The Big G20 Demonstration
The big "Bail Out The People" demonstration marched through Pittsburgh. There were somewhere between 3-5,000 people. They were peaceful. There was a contingent of anarchists, wearing masks of various types, shouting with raised fists which needless to say made the...
The Only Alternative is the Status Quo
Senator Rockefeller summed up the state of health reform when he said, "There is no alternative to the public health insurance option, the only alternative is the status quo." But, we know that the status quo and its lackeys in Congress are going to fight tooth and...
Limiting Banker Pay, Plus: Get The Money From Where The Money Went
Note - I was working on this post when I saw the news – if accurate – that Obama’s advisor on financial firm compensation Kenneth Feinberg is not going to cap pay or reveal any names. The G20 countries are said to be coming up with agreements on limiting banker pay....
Enforcing the Rule of Trade Law on Illegal Paper Imports
My union, the United Steelworkers (USW), and three paper manufacturers will have free traders and editorial boards across the nation sputtering, spitting and name calling again this week. They started labeling us “protectionist” last week when President Obama made...
Obama "Pay Czar" Contradicts G20 Claims
This story just hit the news: "Pay czar" will not cap compensation, reveal names. (Apologies for using the idiotic Glenn Beck term "Czar" to describe an adviser to the President, but Reuters felt it was appropriate to use Glenn Beck's framing, so I have to in order to...
The Failure To End "Too Big To Fail"
The facts, as Wall Street insider-turned-investigative journalist Nomi Prins laid them out Thursday in her talk at the Economic Policy Institute, are a damning indictment of the performance of our politicians. One year after a frenzy of financial industry bailout...
G-20 - Getting Down To Business
Today the world leaders attending the G-20 Summit get down to business. The main issues are economic restructuring to prevent another collapse, addressing trade imbalances, and discussions of climate change solutions. But the overriding issue for all of us boils down...
