Dear Charles Koch

Dear Charles Koch,

You truly are a sad, pathetic, narcissist.

The op-ed you wrote in the Wall St. Journal was the single most glaringly ABHORRENT thing I've read since MEIN KAMPF!

Let me point something out... something that you are OBVIOUSLY oblivious of, apparently...

YOU WERE BORN RICH, YOU SPOILED, BLUEBLOOD FUCK!!!

YOU are the new public face of “Affluenza”!

You have ABSOLUTELY no idea how the other side lives, so don't come to me talking about your “principles,” because YOUR (completely soulless, immoral, anti-ethical) “principles” don't mean a fuck to me.

You have CORRUPTLY PURCHASED governments on all levels, all the way down to SMALL SCHOOL BOARDS!

You pump your oil all over the world's lands and waters.

You pay POVERTY WAGES at your corporations.

You work to KICK people who are already down.

You (and your shitty brother) are the most morally and intellectually corrupt individuals since MOUSILLINI!

You may have billions in (several) banks (many of which you hide so you don't have to pay your fair share on them, you thieving fucks), but with regards to your behavior, you're completely and totally ETHICALLY bankrupt!

You worship Ayn Rand, because you feel it entitles you to have no conscience about the things you do...

Well, why don't you be more like John Galt...

… and just...

… fuck off...

… go away...

… leave...

… we don't want you OR your shitty companies...

… just take your money and fuck off...

… seriously.

You (so-called) “Libertarians” are supposed to believe that “your freedom ends where mine begins,” but with your corruption of the nation's governments, you have shown that you actually don't agree with that.  You seem to think that you can do whatever you want to THE REST OF US, but that we can't have anything to say or do about it.

To put this into context, you fucking hypocrite, this means you are essentially saying “Your freedom never begins because mine never ends.”

If you TRULY believed that, you would just take your shitty money, build your own shitty island, and keep to yourself, sustainably, so you don't have to rely on anyone else.

Instead, you take everything you can from everyone else (yes... I'm saying YOU'RE the “taker”), and walk all over everyone else to do it.

So, here's my proposal...

Do it... just go fuck off to your own island... leave society... take your shitty brother with you, so you can yacht between each others islands... and leave the rest of us the fuck alone...

… or else...

Google the date “14 July, 1789” for more info.

Here's a hint:

You've NEUTERED our government's ability to act against you, by buying enough of it off... but THE PEOPLE are pissed... your tyranny won't stand much longer... THE PEOPLE won't allow it.

So, in closing, allow me to sum up my commentary thusly:

      -You're a fucking narcissist.
      -You're a fucking Blueblood.
      -You're WORSE than that "Affluenza" kid (HE only killed FOUR people... you're responsible for
        THOUSANDS)
      -Fuck off.
      -Go away.
      -Leave.
      -You're a fucking hypocrite.
      -Fuck off.
      -Picture of a guillotine.

Pray we never meet face-to-face.


-Brode

Brode's New Bill of Rights

Friends, allow me to make a suggestion... one that goes back to two specific points in our history as a Nation; the writing of the Bill of Rights, and the Presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

The history of our planet has shown that when money stays in one family for a few generations, they start to think that they're BETTER than everyone else!  When they get this bullshit, inflated sense of superiority (otherwise known as "Affluenza"), they get it in their heads that they can just buy the government out from underneath us, because they're somehow more deserving of rights than the rest of us clods.

We saw it during Slavery... we saw it during the robber-baron era... we saw it during the Great Depression... and we've seen it at it's worst in the last 40 years.  

With the levels of corruption that we've seen at all these times, the time has come to say "Enough is enough" and realize that this is a cycle that will only continue, unless it's addressed as the human rights issue that it is!

Therefore, without further ado, here is my solution to the problem of the tyranny of the wealthy!

I hope you agree, and that you take this to heart as a way to improve our Nation.

If they won't play nice, then we have to MAKE THEM play nice!

text:

WE THE PEOPLE of the United States, having formed a great union, deem these Amendments to the Constitution to be necessary.  As the first Bill of Rights addressed the right to be free from tyranny by the government, it has since shown necessary to also address the tyranny of the wealthy upon the poor.

1. Every man and woman of working age has a right to a job that pays them a living wage.

2. Every man, woman, and child has a right to health care, a home, healthy food and clean water.

3. No executive position shall pay more than one-hundred times the annual salary of the lowest-paid position under their charge.  Executive wage increases must be voted on by the workforce.

4. No corporate entity may use legal representation of greater expense than that of the person suing them.

5.  All workers have a right to arbitration for unjust firings.

6.  Privately-run enterprises that are deemed to be “predatory” can be shut down and their assets seized by the United States Government.

7.  The right of the people to be free from persecution by their employers for what they say and express themselves in their private lives.

8.  The right of the people to know what information is gathered about them by corporate or non-profit entities.

9.  The right of the people to be free from Corporate Monopolism.

10.  The top twenty percent of the wealthiest individuals and businesses may not lobby Government at any level.

Well, there you go... was it everything you were hoping for?  Does this look like 10 things that will address the problems that we currently face?  Is this radical enough?  Is this TOO radical?  You tell me...

Pointing a Few Middle Fingers

We saw it with the Massey Mining Company.

We saw it with BP, Transocean, and Halliburton.

And now, we've seen it with the West Texas Fertilizer Company.

We've seen it time and time again... profit over life... many of us have lived it, ourselves... and now, a pattern repeats itself.

We all remember the tragedies associated with these companies; yet, we fail to make the simple connection linking them all...

Not a single one of them thought enough of their piddly employees or neighbors to ensure their safety. When it came to improving conditions, they bought their way out of it with bribes to Congress by means of “lobbyists”... and their greed cost human lives, and continue to!

These bribes lowered standards and reduced the numbers of regulators to the point that they were too swamped to do their job...

… and now, in Texas, we have a SPECIAL case, in that Rick Perry BRAGS about the deregulation that's “bringing businesses to Texas.” First of all, the VAST majority of jobs that have moved in are MINIMUM WAGE jobs! What fuckin' good is that going to do for a father of two?

Minimum wage... do you realize what 'minimum wage' ACTUALLY means??? 'Minimum wage' means,

“... well, we WOULD pay you less, but we can't... you're really only a peon...”

… and, given the fact that businesses can get away with almost ANYTHING in Texas, minimum wage jobs are moving in, because employers KNOW that they don't have to give a shit about their employees there!

Do we REALLY need any more evidence that these douchebags don't give a fuck about the lives of ANYONE else??? They all knew the risks their employees and neighbors were taking, and they simply didn't care... as long as it saved them a few bucks.

Consider this... employer abuses now are as high or higher than they were... (are you ready for this?)... during THE GREAT DEPRESSION!!!

Yes, there it is again... the Depression... we've seen it in relation to worker compensation, wealth distribution, and reckless Wall Street behavior... and yes... working conditions.

They wanted child labor. They fought a minimum wage. They fought a 40 hour work week. They fought against safe working conditions. They fought it all, because it was eating into their paychecks... and they're STILL doing it today!!!

The upper echelons of the business world have become entirely held by sociopathic blue-blood narcissists, and THIS is what we get for it!!! You can't even call what we get “table scraps” at this point... we get the “pity” pay...

“Here you are... now, go away before you get your 'poor' on me... and don't touch the pool... I'd hate to have to drain it... stay on the plastic, please... off the carpet...”

So what if a few of the lost little lemmings die... there are SO MANY of them... and they just keep making more... they're so CUTE!

Don't you get it yet??? That's how they see us!!! If they didn't, they would have the conscience not to do the things that have taken the lives of so many of the people. If they actually DID care about their employees, they would actually put SOME effort into making safer conditions for the people who make them their fortunes!

Business these days is run like a slaughterhouse. For every one slaughtered, there's another cow coming right in behind to fill the exact same position. So, why take care of them, when they're so easily replaceable?

For a long time, they only paid people enough to keep them from bitching. These days, they don't care how much people bitch... you'll take what you get and you'll LIKE it, or you'll get FIRED for bitching when you should be working!

Employers have us by the balls, because they KNOW it's a shitty economy out there, and they KNOW that you HAVE TO take it, because you'll just get more of the same shit for less money at the next place that tricks you into joining their ranks with silver-forktongue promises without telling you that you have to be there ten years before you get a nickel's raise.

But is anybody in Washington talking about this??? FUCK NO!!! Why??? Because “We the People” don't have a LOBBYIST!!!

Wanna know the fucked up thing???

WE SHOULDN'T HAVE TO HAVE ONE!!! That job SHOULD be filled by the ASSHOLES WE ELECT!!!

At what point does corporate “lobbying” get recognized for what it is... corporate oppression?!

My friends, we've been placing our efforts in the wrong places.

Many of us recognize this for what it is... a silent class war.

We tried to make a change with “Occupy”... but sights were set too high. We were attacking the wrong first target.

If you want the advantage, you first take out the infrastructure with which they arm themselves, so that when they're out of ammo, they're just out; and they can't fire any more shots.

Considering the fact that their ammunition is the money that's flooding into Washington, the first target should be the LOBBYING FIRMS; not the banks, themselves.

The banks are soulless. Asking them to change their ways is no different than asking Charles Manson politely to abandon “Helter Skelter”... which is why you have to take down the “Manson Family” first!

So, what we SHOULD be doing, is making it as hard as possible for these lobbying firms to conduct business! Every time they have a meeting, someone should be RIGHT THERE with a microphone and a video camera!

Those assholes should be shadowed the same way the Paparazzi follows Britney Spears!!!

In fact, TMZ, I'm tired of your shallow, exploitative bullshit! Why don't you direct your efforts somewhere that's ACTUALLY productive for society! Why don't you start following the assholes that might be committing FELONIES, rather than the people who might at some point commit a 'nip-slip?'

I don't give a FUCK about 'who got fat,' or about who's pregnant with who's kid, or who's cheating on who...

NONE OF IT MAKES A FUCKIN' DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD!!! IT'S NONE OF OUR FUCKIN' BUSINESS!!!

You have so-called “journalists” who can find out that J-Lo has a mosquito bite on her ass from three miles away, but you can't use that same team to expose the lobbyists and Congresspeople for the douchebags they are??? Come the fuck on... do the right thing for a change... then, maybe... JUST MAYBE... America won't be seen as the shallow assholes we've become to the rest of the world...

… for fuck's sake...

More Than 'Just' Humans

I've worked A LOT of shitty jobs.

… I mean, A LOT...

… I mean, A LOT of shitty jobs!

In fact, the shitty jobs FAR outnumber the “decent” jobs... and I don't think I'm alone in saying that... I know a lot of people who have floated from one miserable experience to another, hoping to find something where they just feel valued in one way or another; only to find themselves repeatedly in a place where they just get shit on all day, for shitty pay, with a shitty boss, and shitty customers, and shitty conditions, and a shitty atmosphere, and absolutely no recognition for good work... you get the point...

… which begs the question... what exactly DEFINES a “shitty job?”

Well, let's see here... some people might see it as the job, itself... cleaning port-o-potties or outhouses, for example... or cleaning up blood-splattered crime scenes... or cleaning roadkill off the pavement...

Some people might see it as bad working conditions; be it safety or climate related.

Some might see it as a job where there's no chance of advancement.

There are those who might suggest it's a hostile work environment; maybe you work with an ex; or maybe you just work with a dick, or a few dicks; or maybe it's because you CAN'T KEEP YOUR DICK IN YOUR PANTS.

Some might say it's a job with shitty pay, or a job where you're not paid what you're worth.

Some might see it in the “Horrible Bosses” sense.

Some might compare it to “Fight Club” or “American Beauty.” You know... a job where you're miserable just because the job is a bad fit for you... you just hate what you do.

I've had all of these scenarios... some where I had several of these issues at once.

I've had shitty bosses that screamed in my face for taking five seconds to hang up my coat, after clocking in AHEAD of time.

I've had jobs where the company was so big that nobody had any kind of voice.

I've had jobs that would really be better positioned if they burned to the ground.

I've had a job where “part time” was 39 ½ hours; but you were still expected to work as many as 84 hours a week (seven twelve-hour shifts), if the deadlines called for overtime (translation: they didn't have to pay for benefits... cheap bastards).

I had a job at a movie theater where we had a RAW SEWAGE LEAK behind the concessions stand. I was wading through three inches of shit and piss while serving popcorn, candy, hot dogs, nachos, and soda to people who wanted to save a few bucks by going to a “value” movie theater. Then, they decided to vacuum up the mess with a shop vac (with a frayed power cord), and told us all to get back to work before the 9:00 rush.

I had a job where I was getting paid EIGHT DOLLARS A DAY, working FULL-TIME! (fuckin' telemarketing... I'll never do THAT again...)

… and that's just scratching the surface...

The common theme: the people at the top didn't give a shit about any of the rest of us. The size of the company didn't matter... one of them only had about 150 employees. But while WE were just scraping by, the douchebags who ran the company were gallivanting around the world collecting their rare hunting trophies from every continent (which had their own HOUSE... yeah... a whole HOUSE... just for their hunting trophies... every room made up to be a different continent... doesn't it just make you sick?).

They hide themselves from us in their gated communities and on their yachts. They go places where they don't even have to look upon the poor. They isolate themselves completely from us, so they can maintain their delusion that they're better than the rest of us!

Mitt Romney's 47% comments (and really, the entire tape) illustrates this fact in spades. They simply don't see us as humans at all. They see us as rodents and cockroaches. They see us as scavengers, who are always trying to take from the REAL humans... (that being the rich, of course)

… and you know what?

… they're right (in a way)...

… we're NOT humans anymore...

… we're something MORE than 'just' humans...

We're not SOFT, like them... we haven't been PAMPERED our whole lives... we don't have the cleaning staff, or the cooks, or the drivers, or the butlers... we do OUR OWN work! We clean OUR OWN houses! We cook OUR OWN food! We drive OUR OWN cars! We maintain OUR OWN lawns! We shovel OUR OWN walks and driveways! Those wealthy fucks are SOFT ASS PUSSIES because they've never actually had to do any WORK!

WE possess COMPASSION... something they lack entirely. We possess HUMILITY! We possess the HUMAN qualities that THEY DON'T!

Here's the fact, people...

We're the ones who've been hardened by our work!

We're the ones who've earned our muscles and callouses the HARD WAY; rather than in some cushy gym!

We're the ones who endure the harsh conditions in the warehouses, and in the factories, and on the roads!

We're the ones who've taken EVERY STINKIN' PILE OF SHIT they've shoveled at us, and WE'RE STILL STANDING!!!

That shows that we're resilient... It shows that we can't be stepped on that easily!

We need to USE that resilience to CRUSH THESE FUCKERS!!! We need to show them that WE'RE NOT THE INSECTS THEY THINK WE ARE!

Why am I writing this?

Why am I saying all the things I've said 10,000 times before?

Why am I repeating all this again?

… because I want a better world...

… because I see the powers that need to crumble... and it's not the government, as many have been deceived to believe...

… it's the shitwaffles that are CONTROLLING government!

To solve ANY problem, it's best to attack it DIRECTLY at the root; and my friends, the root is all that dirty money that's being shoved at the people we elect by sub-human, narcissistic, worthless, elitist, fuckers with bank accounts that could be featured on an episode of “Hoarders!”

… and WE'RE the ones that have to do it! They're not just BUYING government; they ARE government! You can't seriously expect the rich to regulate their own income, can you???

Then again, why not? I mean, we allow Monsanto to regulate itself, and oil companies to regulate themselves, and banks to regulate themselves... I mean, they have members on all the regulatory boards, so I guess we DO expect them to regulate themselves... wow... they're doing a REALLY shitty job...

WE have to take the initiative to fuck 'em! WE have to do it, because nobody else is gonna!

… and we have to do it...

… because we're SO MUCH MORE than 'just' humans!

Django, VICTORIOUS!!! (Part 2 of 2)

Are you angry yet? Aren't you pissed off? Now that you realize that you're all seen as slaves by the people who own our government, don't you want to do something to fix this? Don't you want to take those fuckers down? If Part 1 left you excited and blood-thirsty, then here's the one you've been waiting for... here's the one with the answers... the way forward to a new future, where WE have the power!

Now, here we are, fresh from our understanding of the most common form of modern slavery; in which Wal Mart is the newest incarnation of “Candieland,” and the role of Leonardo DiCaprio's character is played by the Walton family, Koch brothers, Sheldon Adelson, and all the other billionaires and greedy plutocrats who have the ability and the will to simply BUY our government!

So, with all that in mind, how can we POSSIBLY fix this shit???

Well, I'm here to say that all is NOT lost. There are a SHITLOAD more of US than there are of THEM, and that's where our strength lies! We have a voice, and the numbers to make it LOUD! All we need is a little direction...

So, in what direction should we go?

I believe that the first thing we need to do is strike directly at the heart of their power... their money!

How do we do that? What can peons like us POSSIBLY do to threaten the accumulated wealth that comes from over 30 years of corrupt purchases of government? Moreover, can we do it without talking about “raising taxes?” 

I mean, the second we mention that, heads explode and the whole thing becomes a partisan fight. So, if we can avoid ideas that are already blindly and ignorantly rejected by people on “one particular side” of the aisle, then it loses it's partisan sound, right?

Yes... and yes, we can do something it in such a way as to speak to the injustice without raising taxes even ONE PENNY on anyone...

… in fact, it'll cost very little to accomplish, and the amount that gets PAID BACK into the system will FAR eclipse the cost; meaning, it will CUT THE DEFICIT!!!

Once their power to buy government has been circumvented, they won't have the ability to control the messaging in the same way that they do now; which means that the lies they've paid to spread won't have the financial backing they need in order for the lies to continue to be spread.

If they can't afford to spread their lies, then we actually have to have a debate on the FACTS, which means they will inevitably lose the argument; giving the power back to the rest of us cool, informed, smart people.

People will be forced to look plainly at the lies they've been told, as the money behind them comes crashing down.

Going back to Part 1 of this series, I would like to re-entertain the question asked by Calvin Candie: 

“Why didn't they rise up?”

Well, we will... and here's how we can do it...

I've been saying that we need to break the backs of the bastards who buy the government by taking away their resources; and there's already a law on the books that will allow for such a dramatic and meaningful change... it's called the “RICO Act”

The “RacketeerInfluenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act” was enacted to combat the influence of organized crime (such as mafia families and drug cartels) over elected officials. Given the level of corruption among the wealthy, with regards to their moneyed “contributions” to Congress, Presidential campaigns, judges, and regulatory agencies; it seems painfully obvious to me that we've simply stopped enforcing the “RICO Act.”

Where's my proof? How about this...

Sheldon Adelson, a Las Vegas casino tyrant who largely funded Newt Gingrich's Presidential Primary campaign and Mitt Romney's Presidential campaign, was recently paraphrased as saying, “It's getting harder to buy Congress.” Now, to people like you and me, it's PAINFULLY obvious that he ADMITTED TO BRIBERY!!! If he hadn't been bribing our lawmakers, how could he make such a remark?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bribery

Now, consider the fact that he's JUST ONE BILLIONAIRE... and the vast majority of billionaires have been doing exactly what he has; paying legislators to make the laws they want Congress to make.

So, why the fuck do THEY get to get away with this shit? We wouldn't let the Gambino crime family do it, or a litany of other criminal enterprises; so why is it ok for “legitimate” businessmen to do it; if their intent is to subjugate the rest of us?

Obviously, these narcissistic fucks shouldn't be running around in society, if they're not going to follow the rules that the rest of us have to... right? If they're going to resort to bribery and extortion to get their way, then they should be behind bars; just like any two bit crook who attempts to bribe a police officer or a juror... shouldn't they?

So, why the fuck aren't they sitting behind bars?

Are they “too big to jail?”

Are they somehow BETTER than the rest of us?

You and I know that they're not... we understand that what they're doing is BLATANTLY illegal (or at least, it SHOULD be)... but they're not prosecuted for their crimes against humanity... in fact, they're REWARDED for their corruption, just like the douchebags that ALLOW THEMSELVES TO BE BOUGHT!!!

Now, here's the cool thing about the RICO Act... according to the law, any “ill-gotten gains” that come unto a person as a result of their corrupt actions are TAKEN AWAY!

This means, if we were to start ENFORCING the RICO Act, then all the corrupt assholes who bought government, and the Congressmen who allowed themselves to be corrupted would end up in Federal prison, WHERE THEY BELONG!!!

Not only that, but the power is taken away from the money... it sends a message to all those shitwaffles that we are NO LONGER THEIR SLAVES!!! It tells them, “It's ok for you to run your business and be successful, but you can't do it by suppressing the voice of the people, and lying to make them believe what you want them to, and circumventing elections by simply purchasing legislators!”

They would be forced to operate as LEGITIMATE businessmen; rather than narcissistic, corrupt douchebags!

Once the money's out of the messaging and the government, then WE have the power to influence the people WE elect with our VOTES, without the slavery-steeped BILLIONS of dollars getting in the way!

It tells those motherfuckers, “FUCK YOU!!! Buy a Congressman, lose your fortune!”

That's the message we need to send to those ass-hats!

The corruption has gone TOO FAR!!!

Maybe this IS a “radical” solution to this problem; but it's no more radical than is necessary to restore our democracy to THE PEOPLE! This IS a class war, and WE'RE LOSING!!! I believe that the RICO Act is our “Patriot Missile;” the ammunition we need to regain our power and voice!

We need to start putting pressure on our US Attorneys and Attorney General, Eric Holder to start taking these worthless narcissists down! We should have a national campaign of hate, directed at the ROOT OF THE PROBLEM!!!

Yeah, I said the magic “four-letter word”... and I MEANT it! We SHOULD be hateful of the billionaires! We SHOULD use that hate against them! We SHOULD be pissed; and most of us are! We need to use that to take our country back!

I realize that 'hate' has been used for some VERY despicable things in the past; but I believe that it can be channeled into the right places to affect more positive outcomes! 'Hate' doesn't necessarily have to be EXCLUSIVELY used by bigots and homophobes; the rest of us have plenty of hate, and if it's pointed in the right direction; at the billionaires, rather than at black people as seen in “Django Unchained”; then hate can be used as an effective tool to eradicate the disgusting use of money in politics!

Bear in mind, these assholes aren't just corrupting AMERICAN politicians...

Consider the fact that corporations like Goldman Sachs (among others, including Wal Mart) have been right at the center of the downfall of several European and other major economies as well, including Greece, Spain, Portugal, and Ireland. If we can destroy their influence over American politics, then it may have a big impact on the global economy, as well. If WE start jailing the corrupt billionaires, then maybe the rest of the world will follow suit; or, possibly, by jailing the bankers here, it solves the problems there, as well... which would have a dramatic positive effect on the world's economy; not just ours!

The end result is, those motherfuckers will have to face the fact that we're not buying their bullshit anymore! They will have to realize that their ego is not a reasonable basis on which to take away our voice, freedom, workers' rights, economic rights, and voting rights!

They may THINK they're better than the rest of us, but it's time to SHOW THEM that they're wrong about that! It's time to take away THEIR freedom, and show them what their corruption ACTUALLY buys... a trip to Federal Prison and an empty bank account!

RICO Act... learn it, know it, scream it, proclaim it, and ENFORCE IT!!!

Call your State Attorneys General, Eric Holder, and (if you have a legislator friendly to the cause, like Bernie Sanders, Diana DeGette, Alan Grayson, or Barbara Boxer) your members of Congress... tell them to pressure the Government to start enforcing the RICO Act, like we SHOULD BE!!!

Our future and our prosperity depends on it!

Django Re-Chained (part 1 of 2)

So... anybody seen “Django Unchained” yet?

Well, I hope so, because...

SPOILER ALERT!!!

If you haven't seen the movie yet, I highly recommend it! Simply put, it's one of the greatest movies I've ever seen (as well as Quentin Tarantino's best work), and had the same impact on my perception of the world as “Schindler's List” did, all those years ago.

For those of you who haven't yet seen the movie and who want the basic synopsis, read on; but understand that I will be discussing parts of the movie that might tell you more than you want to know. If, however, you HAVE seen the movie, please either bear with me, or jump ahead to where I start to make my point.

“DjangoUnchained” is the story of a slave who comes into the employ of a German-American bounty hunter, in order to identify certain specific bounties he wants to collect. The two enter into a pact. Django (the slave, played by Jaime Foxx) agrees to help the bounty hunter find the men he's after, and the bounty hunter agrees to help Django track down his estranged wife (who had been sold to another plantation), once the winter months have passed.

This movie is an exquisite example of Quentin Tarantino's ability to simultaneously tell an amazing story and shock viewers with harsh reality and extreme violence. The script and it's portrayal are equally engaging, which makes the three hours you're sitting in the movie theater pass as quickly as a commercial break.

The Academy Award given to Christoph Waltz, while appropriate, fails to demonstrate the captivating nature of both the character and the performance of the character. I hold this character and corresponding actor in the highest regard. I believe that his is one of the greatest performances in cinematic history.

… but I'm not here to talk about the movie, itself...

I'm here to talk about the movie as a reflection of society and history... I just wouldn't be “me” if I didn't put it into a greater context, now, would I?

Perhaps I should include a little personal context, as well...

This movie held a very personal meaning to me, because I know slavery from first-hand experience.

I was held as a slave by my ex-wife for over four years (of the six and a half that we were together). Until I saw the treatment of the slaves in the movie, I failed to fully see the reality of my own previous situation. While sitting in that movie theater, I found myself confronted by ghosts of my own past; which may have had an impact on my own personal feelings about the movie.

Aside from my own history, I also saw frightening correlations to modern American society, as well... things that angered me... things that disgusted me... echoes of the past that are re-visited in the modern future.

Let me put it this way... rich, white assholes haven't changed much. They still seek to own slaves; and the fact of the matter is, they've been widely successful in doing so; with a few caveats. Let's be honest, here... the only thing that's changed is the fact that slavery isn't confined to one race anymore. If you've been working for one of the corporate giants that rule America, then you are either one of the slaves, or you're one of the slave masters (if you're one of the executives in charge of these criminal enterprises).

I don't think a lot of the people in the workforce realize that fact. I don't think a lot of people realize that they, themselves, are slaves to the billionaires and executives who have the ability to simply buy our government in order to change the laws to fit their own narcissistic whims.

Where's the proof?

Well, let's start with the lack of balance with regards to wealth distribution. The rich keep getting richer, while the rest of us are drowning. The executives get raise after raise, and massive bonuses, and other benefits that they don't seem to think they can afford the rest of us. Their wages have gone up while ours have gone down... that says to me that we're doing all the work while they're reaping all the rewards of our work...

… sure as fuck SOUNDS like slavery to me...

We're threatened with termination if we get sick...

We're threatened with homelessness if we lose our jobs...

We're threatened with disease and death because our meager wages can't afford visits to the doctor...

We're threatened with termination if we speak up about what we perceive to be problems in the workplace...

… so, if our very existence is threatened by the way these douchebags run their companies, and we have no choice but to bow to their narcissistic whims, and our lives are in constant jeopardy due to their lack of accountability regarding working conditions, and we have no voice as to the way things are, then doesn't that make us all slaves?

Yep, it does.

Sure, it doesn't FEEL like it; because we DO have the freedom to live where and how (to a point) we want, and we do receive SOME pay (however insufficient). But the wages we receive aren't really very different than the cost of upkeep for the slaves owned by the honkey plantation owners before the Civil War (as adjusted for inflation). They still reap all the benefits of our labor, and we get little more than we need to afford basic housing and food... but no more than that.

Maybe our employers CAN'T whip us or beat us; but they would, if they could... gotta keep us peons in line, you know. Believe me, I've had more than a few jobs where I knew the bosses wanted to hold us hostage to their greed (American Web Printing, I'm looking at you)!

So, when a company decides that they DO want to be able to beat their workers into submission, then they just move their operation overseas somewhere that WILL allow them to do so; as seen by Apple (and other technology companies like Hewlett Packard), with regards to their manufacturing operation at Foxconn factory in China.

The workers(slaves) weren't allowed to go home to see their families... they hadto live at the factory. They were forced to work 18-30 hours a day. They were denied food, reasonable living arrangements, and humanetreatment as workers. It got so bad that the workers were threatening a protest by mass suicide, which Foxconn addressed byputting up “suicide nets” around the buildings, instead ofimproving working conditions. Yeah, they REALLY care about their “employees,” don't they...

… all of this, just so you can have your shiny, new iPhone... don't you just LOVE the injustice you've bought just so you can stay current in technology?

Now, they couldn't get away with treating their laborers that way, here in America; so they had to go somewhere that WOULD allow them to do it. Doesn't that say something about how THEY THINK we should be treated? Doesn't that just show the malice that they feel towards all of us, whom they deem to be “beneath them?”

Want another example? How about the garment factory in Bangladesh, who made clothing for Wal Mart, Sears, Disney, and other American retailers?

Apparently, Wal Mart doesn't think that their employees deserve such basic things as EMERGENCY EXITS in case of a fire... I guess emergency exits are simply not “cost-effective” expenditures. The factory's ownerdidn't even know that there weren't any fire exits, until they were faced with the fire and all the people dying around them as they were trampled and burned alive. What a compassionate asshole... he must REALLY care about his employees, huh?

Either way, American corporations prove, time and time again, that they really don't think their employees are worth a shit. They don't seem to think that we're human beings, deserving of reasonable lives. They don't seem to think that we're worthy of being viewed as actual “people”... which demonstrates the fact that they view us as SLAVES! If they saw us as PEOPLE, then this shit wouldn't happen!

Getting back to my point about “Django Unchained,” there was a pivotal scene near the end, where Leonardo DiCaprio's character (Calvin Candie); who ran the biggest plantation in Mississippi, called “Candieland;” posed the question as to why the slaves didn't rise up and overthrow the white people. He pointed out the fact that white people were vastly outnumbered, and nobody could possibly LIKE living in slavery, so why didn't they rise up?

His physiological explanation was racist beyond ridiculosity; but the question, itself, was valid. Sure, there were a few slave uprisings; but nothing successful until the Civil War. In truth, things didn't improve for the slaves unless they jumped on Harriet Tubman's“underground railroad.”

It seems to me that there was both a lack of ability to organize (primarily because the slave owners went to great lengths to keep them from communicating with other plantation slaves), and a deep-seated terror as to the consequences if a rebellion was unsuccessful (which was entirely warranted, as only white people could own guns; the Second Amendment was put in place, in part, to allow for enforcement of such laws by militias of racist crackers with guns).

Putting this back in a modern context, I beg the question...

… well...

Why DON'T we overthrow the slave lord billionaires, bankers, and executives?

Are we blind to our own plight? Yes... most of us are.

Are we afraid of the consequences? Some of us are.

Are we lacking the organization? ABSOLUTELY!!!

In Part 2, the answers; the pressure WE can apply; the knowledge we need to share and spread to make the bastards FEAR US; like they SHOULD!

Just like slave times, there are a SHITLOAD more of US than there are of THEM... the only things they have more of is money and ego; neither of which can out-scream hundreds of millions of pissed-off, disgusted, bloodthirsty slaves seeking freedom from their untouchable masters!

I'll tell you how we can not only unseat them from their positions of power; but take every stolen penny back from those bastards and throw them behind bars where those soulless shitwaffles belong!

… but it all starts with the understanding that we are nothing more than ants in the billionaires' ant farms! The sooner we understand that, the sooner we can take the bastards down!

Ode to the Working Man

A toast and a suggestion...

Here's to the working man, and all the jobs we do.
Here's to the shit they put us through.
Shitty bosses,
Shitty wages,
Shitty pay,
Shitty coffee.

Here's to the things we've given up.
Here's to the things they've taken from us.
Our lives,
Our raises,
Our benefits,
Our time.

Here's to the way things CAN be!
Here's to the power we CAN'T see!
Our pride,
Our voices,
Our numbers,
Our evidence, implied!

The time has come,
My friends,
To get things done,
my friends.

Our bosses have taken
What WE were due!
And things get WORSE
Every day or two!

Twice the work
For half the pay;
Chided and berated
Nearly every day.

Bullied
And floored.
Demeaned
And ignored.

"I'm sick!"
"I'm tired!"
"I'm disgusted!"
"YOU'RE FIRED!"

We won't give up
One inch more!
I think it's time
We settled the score!

There are more of us
Than there are of them!
Those worthless douchebags'
Fuckin' heads will spin!

Let's stand up
For what we KNOW is right
And tell those shitwaffles
"WE'VE COME TO FIGHT!!!"

-Brode

How to Fix A Lot of Shit With Seven Simple Laws

Ok... I realize that so far, I've been somewhat heavy-handed in the finger-pointing department. I've drawn a clear focus at what I perceive as the root of many of our problems: the Plutocracy.

What I haven't done yet is offer any solutions. I'd be some kind of asshole if all I did was bitch and moan about the way things are, without offering any way to fix it, wouldn't I?

Well, here we go...

Here's how I'll do this... I'll list the law, and then demonstrate it's need and impact. This isn't gonna be the same shit you've heard on TV or radio. These are MY ideas! Most of these aren't the ideas or thoughts that you've seen expressed anywhere else, so read on with the understanding that you're not just gonna see the same warmed over crap you've seen and heard on the radio and television. Sound good? This is gonna be fun!

1. Tie Executives' personal tax rates on ALL INCOME, and corporate tax rates, to the amount of assistance their employees need. The more assistance (food stamps, Medicaid, etc.) their workers need, the more they pay in taxes.

Let's use Wal Mart as an example, here. The Walton family (the family who owns Wal Mart, Sams Club, Pets Mart, etc.) owns more wealth than the bottom 42% of all Americans COMBINED! They make OBSCENE annual salaries, while over half of their employees are on food stamps! On their disgusting salaries, they paid a family average of around 15% in taxes. So, not only are they paying their employees next to nothing, they're paying next to nothing in taxes, as well...

… but their salaries are costing the REST OF US a SHITLOAD of money in tax dollars! Because Wal Mart refuses to pay their employees a decent wage, the rest of us have to pay for the food stamps and other subsidies that Wal Mart's workers need to survive!

I think the WALTONS AND WAL MART should have to pay for those benefits, because THEY cause the need for the benefits! That gives them an option... either they can cut THEIR OWN salaries and pay their employees better, or they can pay 98% above $500k to meet the needs of their employees!

There you go... a way to reduce the wage gap, the wealth gap, and "spending" all in one... but I'm just getting started, here...

2. If the press is to be free, as prescribed by the First Amendment, then it must be FACTUAL!

One of the biggest problems we have today, is our media. So-called “news” organizations lie freely and regularly to their audiences, which means that we do not have a reasonably informed electorate. All the major networks are guilty, and ESPECIALLY the cable “news” networks (Fox, above all).

The damage that's been done to our country by the utter failure of our media and press is insurmountable. Responsibility and ethics have entirely left the building. Something has to be done to fix this. The requirement of factual reporting would protect the spirit of the First Amendment, as well as help to break some of the lies that the public has been fed. Propaganda networks masquerading as “news” would no longer be able to get away with saying “Obama was born in Kenya” or “There are death panels in Obamacare” or “Trickle down economics is working”... people would be told the TRUTH, and would have to vote on the FACTS, rather than the BULLSHIT that's out there now!

This would also force news outlets to report stories that are otherwise quashed by their parent companies and advertisers. If they're going to be competitive, they would have to cover ALL the stories in a clear, concise, honest fashion; not just the ones that are convenient to their sponsors and ideology.

3. If a Church or religious organization is going to preach politics from the pulpit, then they should pay taxes.

The First Amendment sets up a “catch 22” with regards for Churches. On one hand, you have the first ten words, which read, “Congress shall pass no law respecting an establishment of religion...” but later, it says, “... or abridging the freedom of speech...”

Arguably, if the Church has it's freedom of religion and speech, then saying that it can't impose itself on the law of the land, there's a conflict there. As a resolution, a deal was struck. The Churches were granted a tax exempt status, provided they stay away from political speech.

Several religious organizations, however, have not taken this to heart. Consider organizations like Focus on the Family, the Family Research Council, and all the other anti-gay and anti-abortion groups, who believe that THEIR religious beliefs should become law. Obviously, they are committing a breech of their end of the contract, so in my mind, they should either lose their tax-exempt status or pay a fine. If they can't live up to their end of the bargain, they don't get the perks... it's that simple!

4. Limit executive compensation.

Over the last 30 years, the wages of the people at the top have exploded, while the rest of our salaries have stagnated and/or declined. That's just a fact. We all know it. We've all seen it. If THEIR wages have gone UP and ours have gone DOWN, then it becomes obvious that the raises that WE were due were STOLEN by the people at the top!  The executives have proven that they're not going to be honest or fair with regards to compensation, so steps have to be taken to restore balance.

If executive compensation were limited to 100 times (or even 150 times) that of their lowest paid employee, then things would have to change FAST!  It would put more money in the hands of people who SPEND it rather than HORDE it.  The increased consumer spending would create the need for jobs, which would lower the unemployment rate.  On top of that, people would be making more money, so they would actually be able to clean up their credit, buy houses and cars, and regain their financial footing.

5. Limit executive benefits.

One of the things we've seen over the years, is the slashing of benefits to employees. While the employees have to do with less, the people at the top remain comfy. There should be a law that says executives should receive the EXACT SAME benefits they offer their employees and NO MORE!

Executive bonuses would dramatically drop, as they would be forced to spread the wealth among ALL the people that worked to make the business successful... not just the shitwaffles at the top! A successful business is a TEAM effort, and the spoils should be shared by the WHOLE team; not just the coaches!

On top of that, the Executives would have to see the health care system in a more similar light to the rest of us! AND, if they get a pension, then WE SHOULD, TOO!!!

… and check THIS out... executives of companies that give their employees NO benefits (I'm looking at YOU, Wal Mart) wouldn't have THEIR benefits either!!! QUIT YOUR FUCKIN' BITCHING! TRY LIVING LIKE THE PEOPLE YOU'VE DEEMED YOURSELVES SUPERIOR TO!!!

6. Break up monopolies.

Ahhhhhh... an oldie, but a goodie... revived from the days of Franklin Delano Roosevelt; necessary once again. How about an example...

Have you ever heard of a company named Luxottica? Probably not, but they own an entire INDUSTRY! Wanna know what companies they own? Well...

Lens Crafters, Sunglass Hut, Target Optical, Sears Optical, Pearle Vision... just about every major optical chain you can find...

They also own...

Ray Ban, Oakley, Arnette, Vogue, Persol, Revo, Oliver Peoples, Steroflex, Mosley Tribes, and ESS... AS WELL AS the the optical lines for Anne Klein, Brooks Brothers, Bvlgari, Burberry, Chanel, Chaps, Coach, Fox, Dolce & Gabana, DKNY, Donna Karan, Miu Miu, Polo, Paul Smith, Prada, Ralph Lauren, Stell/McCartney, Tiffany & Co., Tory Burch,and Versace.

So, they own all the major chains AND most of the brands that are sold everywhere in the country... tell me how that's NOT a monopoly... where's the “free market,” here???

Consider this... Luxottica is just one of SEVERAL monopolies around the country. Want a few more examples? 

 Ok... How about this... 

How many companies other than Comcast can you go to for Cable TV service? 

Can you start an independent radio station?

Monopolies are EVERYWHERE, and if we want to offer any REAL kind of “free market competition,” the monopolies have to be broken up! Stricter regulations must also be put in place to prevent them from regaining their stranglehold on their various markets and industries.

7. Create “Mediation Centers” for workers to address their grievances against their employers.

As union membership has declined, so have workplace conditions. Employers now openly and blatantly commit abuses against their workforce, knowing that people are afraid to lose their jobs if they speak up!

I think it's time to make it easier for workers to address their concerns without fear of retaliation. People should be able to speak their minds about their working conditions without being seen as insubordinate.

The people may have “freedom of speech” in society and with regards to our government, but when it comes to our places of employment, that freedom ends! People should be able to express their opinions without fear!

If concerns are presented to the “Mediation Center,” WITH EVIDENCE OF MALFEASANCE, then concerns should be addressed by means of mediation between officers of the company and the workforce. This would also have the benefit of dictating trends among the working populous regarding laws and regulations that are necessary. For example, if there are lots of people coming in complaining that their employers aren't allowing them to take breaks and it can be proven, then obviously legislation is needed to fix that problem. Or if unreasonable quota expectations are required... or if managers speak in a demeaning way...

The “Mediation Center” will also monitor statistics and trends regarding the workforce. It will be a direct link of communication between the government and the working class, which will give us more of a voice in government, bypassing the lobbyists who really don't give a fuck about how we're treated.

The goal with this is to make employers more empathetic to the needs of their employees. It will balance out the power that the rotten shitwaffles at the top have over the people at the bottom. It'll give a very clear picture of what the working class is going through and bring these issues more to the forefront. This can be paid for by fines assessed to companies who have high numbers of complaints. If they have more complaints, then obviously, they have a lot to fix and it's going to cost a lot to mediate that. However, smaller businesses that have smaller, minor complaints and will take less mediation don't have to pay anything (or very little) for their assistance. The companies that cause the majority of the problems pay more to resolve them... it's that simple. It'll teach a lesson to all the douchebags at the top who think they're fuckin' better than the rest of us... those fuckin' narcissists would get the lesson in humility that they SO DESPERATELY need!

There you have it. Seven simple laws that ACTUALLY fix shit! They punish the wicked and relieve the stressed. They inspire integrity, rather than underhandedness. They enforce the ideals that make America great! Mostly, they take power away from the people who have abused it, and gives it to the people they've FUCKED!

Maybe this is just a “Dear Santa” list, and nothing will ever come of it. Maybe our government is just so fucked up that necessity will never ring true. I'd like to think that's not the case. I'd like to think that there are enough sane people left in the country to fill the gaps left by the crazy and/or stupid people. I'd like to believe that things have a chance of getting better. I'd like to believe that we're rising above the bullshit that's constantly shoveled in our faces. I'd like to believe that those of us at the bottom still have a chance to disembowel the dastardly bastards who operate under the delusion that we're inferior to them! I'd like to believe that we still have the option of paying back those fuckers with a reality check!

Are these radical ideas? That depends on who you ask. If you ask the millions of people who are tired of getting fucked and fed bullshit, these things are probably just about right. If you ask the millionaire and billionaire executives from Wal Mart, probably not. However, I tend to fall into the “fuck 'em” category, because they've never shown ME (or the rest of us) any fuckin' respect, so why the fuck should we show THEM any? Every time we “turn the other cheek,” we get “the other cheek” slapped with a steel-toe boot, so why the fuck should we afford those assholes ANY slack? There's a time for Jesus, and a time for Hammurabi...

You know what I say?

… STOP… Hammurabi time! (Can't Touch This)