COPY RIGHTS NOTICE

STEAL THIS BLOG!

This is the personal blog of Rick Staggenborg, MD. The opinions expressed here do not necessarily reflect the official positions of Take Back America for the People, an educational 501.c3 nonprofit established by Dr Staggenborg.

Feel free to reproduce any blogs by Dr Staggenborg without prior permission, as long as they are unedited and posted or printed with attribution and a link to the website.

For other blogs, please contact the author for permission.


Friday, June 8, 2012

WE ARE ALL SPANIARDS NOW


   


Spain is joining the effort to oppose austerity measures that have sent shock waves throughout the European Union. The lesson from the voters in recent elections to governments that accepted austerity as the price to pay for subservience to European banksters was not lost on government leaders in Madrid. In Italy, Greece and other nations where leaders submitted to Merkel’s IMF-inspired austerity measures, those politicians and there parties lost power when the people resisted.

Spain is in a unique position to resist attempts by the European titans of banking to impose the Shock Doctrine throughout the EU. In this case, the idea is to extort taxpayer money by lending it the funds to pay back debts resulting from the fallout from the derivatives scam that these bankers profited handsomely from. The quid pro quo is the adoption of economic "reforms" that benefit international investors at the expense of the citizens of those nations who are then made to pay tribute to them in perpetuity. These payments constitute an ever-growing proportion of the GDPs of these nations because the austerity measures cripple the economies of debtor nations.

Spain’s rejection of the “generous” offer of the Central Bank of Germany and other lenders to provide loans at low interest in exchange for crippling austerity measures is a milestone  in the fight against austerity and the war against the workers of the world. It falls short of the daring open revolt against austerity in Iceland but may be the first step toward renouncing debt
by other nations.

With the fourth largest economy in the European Union, Spain can put real pressure on European banksters to lend money without austerity conditions that have proven a disaster in Greece, Ireland and elsewhere. It is a simple maxim of economics that the only sane response to economic contraction in the private sector is expansion of the government’s role in providing jobs. That is a notion that seems difficult for banksters and other international corporate terrorists to understand. To them, life is a game of Monopoly and helping others achieve and maintain a decent lifestyle at the expense of their bottom lines is cheating.


The Greek economy is collapsing and with it Greek society is falling apart. With soaring unemployment and a shredded social safety net, the suicide rate is dramatically increasing. Those who can afford it are hoarding money in anticipation of default and a return to a drachma drastically reduced in value by the debts a profligate government has accumulated. It is ironic that in the birthplace of democracy the People’s voice has been drowned out by the cries of foul of the banksters in other EU nations. The same is true in the US, the birthplace of the experiment in modern democracy that appears to be failing since corporations were handed the reins of government there.


It can truly be said that we are all Greeks now, at risk of having the wealth produced by the worker stolen by the parasite class who control government in nations around the world. Those who profit from the sweat of others do so by bribing politicians to put the interests of multinational corporations over those of their own citizens. In the US and some other nations, this has been accomplished by financing the campaigns of those willing to be their Puppets in return for wealth and power. That is why the people of the United States must come together to Take Back America for the People, if not for the sake of the Peoples of the world then in their own self-interest, which are in the end are one and the same.

It will require constitutional change to ban all expenditures by special interest groups in American elections. That is why we are all Egyptians now as well. Egypt’s bid for democracy has been stymied by the military rulers’ defiance of calls for fundamental constitutional change that would allow for democratic elections and lead to a government of, by and or the People. Having become dependent on US taxpayer money used to bribe them to guard Israel’s southern border, the leaders of the Egyptian military are understandably reluctant to allow real democracy to undermine their privileged positions.


The only way that the Peoples of Earth will ever gain sovereignty in their own nations is for them to come together to build a united international front against fascism and war. Having suffered decades of fascist rule, Spaniards have a special responsibility. Descendents of the victims of the massacres in the Spanish Civil War have a moral responsibility to lead the effort to create a democratic New World Order. Together we can end the dreams of the international corporate terrorists who seek to establish a permanent fascist New World Order in which we are all economic slaves of a small cabal of elites.


There is hope that we will be aided by the blindness of those who would become Masters of the Universe. It is clear that they cannot foresee the imminent demise of their plans for conquest in the global game of Risk as the long game of Monopoly winds down to its predictable end. The leaders of the war against the workers of the world do not seem to understand a fundamental principle of warfare: The aggressor has no real allies, only other nations that will play along when it suits the purposes of their leaders. As the global economy collapses, expect to see these self-appointed Masters of the Universe turn on one another in a feeding frenzy.
  As in any game of Monopoly, there is after all only one winner. If we refuse to play by their rules, it is we who will come out winners.

It may be a good time to invest in popcorn. It should be quite a show.








Wednesday, June 6, 2012

THE BLAME GAME






The first thing a family therapist learns is that to resolve conflicts leading to the need for intervention, everyone concerned has to let go of the need to assign blame for the problems. Understanding that very bad things can happen from the actions of essentially good people caught in a dysfunctional system is the first step necessary to create a strong family that can solve its problems without outside help.

This lesson applies to societies as well. Like a family, members of a society depend on each other to help deal with problems affecting each of them and society as a whole. In an increasingly complex society that is failing to meet the needs of more people every year, it is critical to remember that societies are formed to meet the needs of their members. As in a healthy family, in a sane society members do their best to ensure the safety and well being of all other members.


Across America and in many parts of the world we are witnessing the breakdown of families. As the global game of Monopoly winds down to its end, wealth continues to accumulate in the hands of the few, causing mounting pressure for the many. The strains of daily living are such that we are seeing a rise in alcoholism, drug abuse, violence, homelessness and the abandonment of the ideal that it is our moral duty to care for one another. As a result, abuse of children is rising, incarceration of youth is reaching alarming proportions and the current generation of children seems destined to perpetuate the cycle of abuse, abandonment and nihilism that threaten society as a whole.


In such circumstances, it is natural for responsible adults who recognize the problem to first look for causes. In doing so, some are singled out for blame. However,
 the accusers often fail to recognize their own roles in maintaining the dysfunctional system. Those who think themselves conservatives blame the problem on “socialism” while many who think of themselves as liberal blame creeping “fascism.” The response of those who think the “mommy society” is too permissive is to demand more control over the behavior of others. Those who think the “daddy society” is authoritarian and controlling naturally rebel at restrictions on their personal freedom, leading to behaviors that frighten those who have a psychological need for order and control.

In families and societies where those in power limit choices of individuals, the result is members who do not learn to think for themselves. They do not learn to question whether what they are taught by parents or learn from society makes sense when compared to their own experience. Because of this, they may accept the fallacy that each of us is responsible for our own destiny when the fact is that in a society where the powerful are allowed to prey upon the weak, opportunities to succeed are limited by a system set up by those who profit the most from inequity.


In families and societies where personal responsibility is not taught, there is chaos because members lose sight of their collective responsibility just as surely as those who only value personal responsibility. Both fail to recognize that a society, like a family, has a responsibility to take care of its own. In either case, selfishness is the rule and all suffer as a result. When members of a family think only of themselves, there are no familial bonds to help members weather the inevitable storms life. In the same way, members of societies in which it is believed that each of us is interested in only what we can get by outcompeting each other are lost when that society begins to unravel. Thanks to our worship of those who have fared best in the game of Monopoly that we accept as a given, we have failed to recognize that we can change the rules anytime we choose. However, changing the rules requires consensus. That requires that we talk to each other in a spirit of compassion born of brotherly love.


When families break down, it is often the result of one member being labeled as the “black sheep,” who becomes the scapegoat for conflicts in the family. In a sick society where brother turns on brother, the “black” sheep are often those of color who are different only in appearance from the white majority. In the US, a nation dominated by white-skinned Europeans, the scapegoats are currently African Americans, Hispanics and Arabs. In European nations themselves, Muslims and African immigrants are often blamed for the unrest in those societies.


Now that people around the world are falling victim to the depredations of the international corporate terrorists who have seized control of the US government, we must all realize our common interest in standing up for each other to establish liberty and justice for all. We are one human family and together comprise one society of Mankind. Our commonalities are much more important than our differences: they are what make us human. Our differences provide the variety that is the spice of life. More importantly, it is our diversity that gives us the ability to evolve as a people into one which will create a rational, sustainable world in which our children can not only survive, but thrive.