Ifè Oshun: Assorted Rants

Who Hillary said that Obama was too inexperienced and too naive to lead? The recent contemptible attack by George W. Bush not only proves further that Bush is unequivocally unworthy for the office, it gave Obama the opportunity to showcase his almost surreal ability to rally people around him. As one yolt13 said on Ben Smith’s blog:

“Obama’s tete-a-tete with Bush is a watershed moment for him, because media outlets reported it with headlines like “Democrats Outraged”. Not “Some Democrats” or “Obama Supporters”; just “Democrats”. By taking Bush to task, Obama formally took the reins of the Democratic Party. Even Hillary stood up to defend him!”

The past few days have renewed the faith of many in the Democratic Party’s ability to unite in the wake of one of the most bruising presidential campaigns in recent memory. And it was good for this former Hillary Clinton supporter to see her look and sound like the Hillary Clinton some of us grew up with.

A few months ago (yeah I know it’s been a while, but here I am again, ok?), I made a reference to the disappearing border of what was once the United States of America. Now that the Social Security Administration (SSA) has released the first known public copy of the US-Mexico Social Security Totalization Agreement, the plot is truly out in the open.

Thanks to our litigious society, our government-for-sale was forced to make the disclosure in response to lawsuits filed under the Freedom of Information Act by TREA Senior Citizens League.

According to Yahoo News, the agreement “could allow millions of illegal Mexican workers to draw billions of dollars from the U.S. Social Security Trust Fund.”

Now on one hand, this could be as Malcolm X would say “the chickens coming home to roost.” After all, Mexico used to encompass much of what we call the South West U.S. before our conquering fathers killed everybody and divided the spoils.

But on the other hand, it’s yet another wake up call; a massive bell-ringing for the benefit of every American citizen, courtesy of a government that ditched “by the people, for the people” in favor of “big business at all costs.”
BTW, happy new year.

Download the agreement

Double kudos to our government for (1) continuing to ignore the outsourcing of American jobs to foreign countries and (2) fostering an environment where US based corporations can actively lobby to prevent the Chinese government from strengthening their own unions.

Today’s New York Times talks about how, after decades of worker abuses via sweatshops and the like, the Chinese powers-that-be are working to fix the situation by “giving labor unions real power for the first time since it introduced market forces in the 1980’s.”

Most decent people who’ve ever read about sweatshop laborers, many of them children, and the horrid conditions they are forced to work in, would welcome this news, however our government is actively lobbying against it.

Why?

Well since foreign investment has risen since the free market lowering of wages in the 80s, big companies have made a ton of money in China. Now those outrageous profits are in danger of diminishing. God forbid these American companies, such as Disney, or Walmart (recently forced to bow to the Chinese unions) would bring some of these jobs back to the States.

But their attitude towards the Chinese wanting to strengthen their unions is despicable.

“’This is really two steps backward after three steps forward,’ said Kenneth Tung, Asia-Pacific director of legal affairs at the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company in Hong Kong and a legal adviser to the American Chamber of Commerce here.”

Hmmm… I’m sure if Mr. Tung’s balls were sweating in one of these factories, he might have a different view. The Times also reports:

“The skirmish has pitted the American Chamber of Commerce — which represents corporations including Dell, Ford, General Electric, Microsoft and Nike — against labor activists and the All-China Federation of Trade Unions, the Communist Party’s official union organization.”

Big ups to watchdogs such as Global Labor Strategies (GLS) are issuing criticisms and reports “denouncing American corporations for opposing legislation that would give Chinese workers stronger rights.”
Source: New York Times|CNNMoney 

Also read: Chinese Labor Watch

Russell Simmons, an independent, is catching hell from his liberal colleagues for endorsing a conservative.

In his own defense, the hip-hop mogul released a statement today that serves as a good example of how this country’s voters need a good kick in our collective ass. Blind loyalty to your chosen party, while easier and far less challenging, is no longer viable, and never was truly American. The ugly truth in this new millennium is that our archaic, limiting party labels are quickly becoming obsolete, and if we the people can get with the program while we still have our current borders, we might have a fighting chance.
Here is the statement in full:

Some of my liberal friends and associates are quite upset with me for personally endorsing Maryland Lt. Governor Michael Steele for the United States Senate. Steele is conservative and a Republican. I am an Independent who has, in the past, supported numerous Democratic candidates with the recent exception of my endorsement of the re-election of New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a moderate Republican. (more…)

Funny how it’s called Google bombing. The layers of meaning go so deep on this one.

I’m assuming this little trick’s been around for a while since I alway seem to be the last one to get forwarded emails, so if you’ve already done this, just bear with my slow ass. If you haven’t, check this out:

Go to Google.com and type in the following word - “failure.”

Now see what comes up as the top result.

Now that’s hot in a sad way. This is the point where you might want to laugh but then you realize you, along with the rest of the free-for-now world, should probably cry.
Google also takes the time to explain their results which shine light, and a glimmer of hope, on the beauty of democracy and free speech.

God bless America. God bless the Internet.

Thanks to mamacita Nina Ames for the email and makethemaccountable.com for the image.