Published in the Consortiumnews (Link to article and comments) As Official Washington lusts for a new Cold War – all the better to fleece the taxpayers on behalf of the Military-Industrial Complex – there are also smaller perks that the powerful prefer, like U.S. generals having enlisted soldiers perform as their personal servants like the…
Washington’s Libido for the Ugly
Surveying the real estate choices of Washington’s contractors, lobbyists and corporate lawyers reveals the raw, nouveau-riche tastes of our capital’s shadow government. Published in Bill Moyers and Company ( Link to article and comments) Gates at Xanadu. (Photo by Mike Lofgren) In 1927, H.L. Mencken rode by train through the Pennsylvania coal country. The houses…
An oligarchy has broken our democracy. It must be dislodged
Pro forma elections have camouflaged the true state of our political system. Will that change this year? Each new election year promises change. We will choose a new president and new representatives in Congress; fresh faces will make their appearances in Washington DC, while old ones disappear. But what about the people who stay in…
Republican Deficit Hypocrisy
Published Jan 15 in the New York Times Link to Article At the Republican debate last night in South Carolina, Republicans were happy to talk about, and denounce, the budget deficit and debt. Senator Marco Rubio said that we must “bring our debt under control.” Mr. Rubio, like other G.O.P. candidates, rails against the deficit as…
“Deep State” Interview
Link to Interview and comments Controlled by shadow government: Mike Lofgren reveals how top U.S. officials are at the mercy of the “deep state” A corrupt network of wealthy elites has hijacked our government, ex-GOP staffer and best-selling author tells Salon ELIAS ISQUITH One of the predominant themes of the 2016 presidential campaign thus far —…
The West’s Deadly Mideast Fantasies
Published in the Consortiumnews Exclusive: Madness or at least self-deception now dominates the West’s approach to the Middle East, with ostensibly rational leaders like Barack Obama and Francois Hollande fueling public hysteria about terrorism and pursuing “regime change” strategies proven to fail, as Mike Lofgren explains. Around the time of the 2003 Iraq invasion and…
Republicans Are Revolutionaries, Not Conservatives: A Response to Thomas Schaller
Published in billmoyers.com There is much to commend in Thomas Schaller’s recent piece describing the built-in structural advantages that the Republican Party enjoys in the American electoral system. Some analysts believe this advantage derives from the systematic gerrymandering of legislative districts; others declare it a result of a voluntary demographic “sorting” of Democrats into metropolitan areas…