RICK ON "YOU ARE THE ONLY GAME THAT ISN'T RIGGED! AND THE GREAT AMERICAN BUBBLE MACHINE!!"/PL COMMENTS

Here's Rick with my comments interspersed:

"Finally, unabashed praise for a piece that isn’t politically motivated. Usually on this blog, that type of admiration and adulation is reserved for those who just can’t help themselves. They start with a premise and some convincing evidence but then show their true motivation by bashing with a political baton and conveniently string together unlikely conclusions while avoiding the possibility of another conclusion or set of facts."

PL:

Hi Rick! As Steven Colbert once humorously said at a dinner for George W. Bush, "You can't trust reality because everyone knows that reality has a liberal bias!" It's not "politically motivated" to call a big white elephant a big white elephant, anymore than it is so to call a retrogressive, self-righteous scam artist your typical Republican in the 00's.

Rick:

"Matt Taibbi succeeds in going boldly where few men have gone. Thought you’d might like the Trek reference. As others have mentioned previously, Noam Chomsky speaks the same language. There really isn’t much difference between Bush and Obama as Presidents or Dems or Repubs. The political and economic systems of our country don't allow it. Taibbi constructs a credible case as his argument of corruption spans several presidencies but centers on Goldman Sachs."

PL:

Always love the Trek references! Now, as I've said many, many times on this blog, which you say you read but sometimes I wonder, you will not find one article by me on this blog promoting or praising Democrats. Just reference the word. However, in this era, Republicans have gone out of their way to look sleazy and stupid, if not downright psychiatrically disturbed in a major way. So, I, like many of the writers I reference, point that out because we need a compass that isn't totally skewed and skewered by jingoistic, racist, misogynist, trickle-down bullshit.

Rick:

"Unfortunately, it is a scary system that could implode if it continues. The Romans, 16th century Spain, 18th century France and countless communist countries of the 20th century all overextended themselves, incurred heavy debt and economically collapsed. The examples are there so why are we repeating history? Hubris? People don’t care as long as the individual can feed him/herself + family and feels relatively safe. History proves this as well. Look at the horrible violent dictatorships. Why wasn’t there mass revolution? Castro’s Cuba? Tito’s Yugoslavia? Hitler’s Germany? Stalin’s Russia? Hussein’s Iraq? Today’s Iran? (although there seems to be some movement that might prove revolutionary) These rulers enjoyed relative popularity while they each drove their countries into economic ruin."

PL:

The corrupt leaders you mentioned, and those that we have been saddled with so often in our own country, may appear to suffer from "hubris," but it is in fact, a psychopathic character structure, very often of the "ominous sociopathic" type, that they are entrenched in. The masses who accept the abuse combine masochistic and oral character structure elements, and simultaneously are very often young souls. Obama is an exception in two ways, although he needs some work: he is more of a mature soul than a young soul, and his character structure, as I once wrote to the protest of your buddy, "LOFF56," is that of a rigid character, rather than a psychopath.

Rick:

"Where or what can we employ to help stave this kind of rampant corruption and destruction? Should we blame Goldman Sachs for playing a game it is allowed to play? Should we destroy the politicians that help perpetuate the game? It is a tough call. Religious leaders, charitable organizations and individuals who promote community may have the key. I like this quote by a religious leader, 'Profit is useful if it serves as a means toward an end. Once profit becomes the exclusive goal, if it is produced by improper means and without the common good as its ultimate end, it risks destroying wealth and creating poverty…The economy needs ethics in order to function correctly — not any ethics, but an ethics which is people centered.'
Can America subscribe to this out of thin air or do we need a revolution? Thomas Jefferson thought we should have one every 20 years because he understood the level of greed + corruption inherent in leaders."

PL:

As John Lennon once sang: "You say you want a revolution? You better free your mind instead."

Until we tackle our own immaturities, insecurities, neediness, inner stagnation and suppressed feelings one person at a time in some kind of serious self-work, what you've seen and will continue to see, Rick, from Genghis Khan to The Wrath of Khan, is what you'll get!

Thanks for the comments.