Wednesday, November 29, 2017

Help Stop!!! Koch Brothers & ALEC from Destroying America the Money behind Republicans

TAKE BACK AMERICA 

FROM KOCH  - ALEC - GOP TEA PARTY-TRUMP


I have been wondering who the "Donors" are that are pushing Republicans to pass the GOP Tax Scam-Surprise Surprise it is Koch! 

This article by  By  | The Associated Press June 26, 2017 

sheds a lot of light on what is happening right now. We now need to focus on the donors they must become targets of our rage-boycott their products-fright back with your votes and pocket books. 

If you have been following news about the Koch brothers, you might be curious as to which products they manufacture. 

Top 7 Companies Owned by the Koch Brothers


The Koch brothers have become well-known for their libertarian and conservative politics, and are often portrayed as significant personalities that impact elections and government decisions. (See also: The Koch Brothers: America's 2nd Wealthiest Family.)
However, despite the Koch brothers’ fame as political influencers, their primary activities are centered around running Koch Industries Inc., of which they own 84%. This is a private company that has revenues topping $100 billion. However, it is not really a single company, but a conglomerate of companies the brothers own and operate.
The industries under the Koch umbrella are diverse, ranging from companies that deal with energy to spandex. Koch companies manufacture paper, process minerals, create fertilizers and refine oil.
We have selected seven top companies owned by the Koch brothers so that you can have a glimpse of the scope and nature of their business holdings. All information is current as of November 26, 2017.

1. Flint Hills Resources

Flint Hills is a fuel-producing company. It offers petroleum products, gasoline, diesel fuels, jet fuels and other oil products. The company's ethanol plants have a combined production capacity of more than 800 million gallons per year. 
The company also explores biofuels. Flint Hills markets a variety of chemical applications, coatings, automotive parts and asphalt. Flint Hills markets and sells on a worldwide basis, including the United States, Asia, Australia, Europe, South America, Central America and New Zealand.

2. Georgia-Pacific

This is a paper company that produces paper, tissue, toilet paper, and building products and includes the well-known brands Quilted Northern tissue, Brawny paper towels and Dixie cups. Aside from these products, wallboard napkins, boxes, paper dispensers, and pulp round out the company’s offerings. 
The company employs more than 35,000 people in over 200 locations. Georgia-Pacific claims to be environmentally responsible. It is based in Atlanta, Georgia, but markets worldwide.

3. Guardian Industries

Think of Guardian Industries as a glass company. It manufactures glass for automobiles, building applications, fiberglass insulation and coated glass for architectural needs.
The company is known for its research and development of new applications for glass, such as energy-efficient windows.
Based in Michigan, Guardian Industries employees 18,000 people in the United States, South America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Asia.

4. Invista

Invista makes spandex, resins, chemicals and polymers. It is a spin-off of DuPont, now owned by the Koch brothers. The company concentrates on textiles and owns numerous brands such as Lycra, Tactel and Thermolite, as well as brands for outdoor gear, carpet (Stainmaster) and luggage.
In total, Invista owns 23 brands, and is involved in fabrics, fibers, plastics, polymers, chemicals, and the licensing of technology. The company operates in 20 countries and has 10,000 employees.

5. Molex

Molex creates electronics to solve technical problems in electric cars, robotic surgery and even the Mars Rover. The company is also involved in fiber optics, smartphones and defense applications.
Molex counts nearly 100,000 products in its catalog, and has more than 42,000 employees in 39 countries.

6. Koch Ag & Energy Solutions

Koch Ag and Energy Solutions operates three Koch Industries companies. Koch Fertilizer manufactures and markets a wide variety of fertilizer products used in the agriculture industry. It operates a global distribution network with terminals in North America, South America, and Europe. Koch Energy Services markets electricity and natural gas in North American markets.
It uses its expertise in market analysis, purchasing, hedging, and energy logistics to provide comprehensive services to other companies. Koch Methanol is a methanol supplier. It was originally established to fulfill the needs of Koch Industries subsidiaries, but it now works with other companies as well.

7. Koch Pipeline Company

This company owns pipelines throughout Texas, Minnesota, Missouri, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Illinois. The pipelines transport oil and refined petroleum, as well as natural gas. Some of the pipelines are associated with Flint Hills Resources. 
Koch Pipeline Company operates approximately 4,000 miles of pipeline in six U.S. states, the longest of which include the 580-mile Wood River Pipeline in Missouri and a 540-mile pipeline system in South Texas, which both transport crude oil.

8. Time Inc.

Meredith Corp (MDP.N) announced on Nov. 26, 2017 that it will buy TIME Inc (TIME), the publisher of magazines like Fortune, Sports Illustrated and People, in a $1.84 billion all-cash deal backed by the Koch siblings.

The brothers will contribute $650 million in preferred equity via Koch Equity Development (KED), the investment arm of Koch Industries. The press release announcing the acquisition said KED will not have a seat on Meredith's board or any influence over its operations. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2018.

The Bottom Line

Koch Industries Inc. is so vast it is hard to grasp its full reach. Because Koch Industries is a private company, it is not required to publish the kinds of financial information that publicly-traded companies publish. Figures about the size of Koch Industries and the companies it owns are not as reliable as figures for public companies.


Read more: Top 7 Companies Owned by the Koch Brothers | Investopedia https://www.investopedia.com/insights/companies-owned-koch-brothers/#ixzz4zq0yIEym
Follow us: Investopedia on Facebook

Koch financing TeaParty
A Political Crisis:

Charles and David Koch, the billionaire brothers with the second biggest fortune in America, are threating to bankroll primary campaigns by Tea Party extremists challenging Republicans in Congress who don’t go along with their crusade to undo the Affordable Care Act, Sen. Bernie Sanders said on Saturday during a 90-minute presentation at The New Yorker Festival. Then on Sunday The New York Times published a report detailing how the Kochs and others bankrolled a coalition of conservative activists pushing to repeal the health care law and threatening Republicans who won’t go along with closing the government to try to get their way.

It’s “a political crisis,” Sanders said of the shutdown. It is part of a Koch-funded campaign to annul the law that passed Congress four years ago and was upheld by the Supreme Court and was a key issue in the 2012 presidential campaign that President Obama won by 5 million votes. And it is about more than trying to unwind what the American people decided through the democratic process, Sanders stressed.Their agenda is to end Social Security and Medicare, abolish the minimum wage, destroy the EPA and undo every other program enacted in the past half century to protect working families in America, Sanders added.

Read the article here: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/06/us/a-federal-budget-crisis-months-in-the-planning.html?_r=0
ALEC Tampering with our food supply
http://billmoyers.com/2013/10/04/playing-chicken-with-food-safety/

is President Obama joining ALEC to promote the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP)? 

http://truth-out.org/news/item/19135-the-trans-pacific-partnership-we-wont-be-fooled-by-rigged-corporate-trade-agreements

KOCH UPDATE
If you are on Facebook here are some great places you should follow and share to  help stay informed about Koch Industries ...

https://www.facebook.com/RobertGreenwaldBNF

Excellent movie Koch Brothers Exposed!
http://www.kochbrothersexposed.com/

https://www.facebook.com/groups/145674108796899/635563649807940/?comment_id=635730016457970&notif_t=group_comment_reply



ALEC HAS OPERATED IN SECRET FOR OVER 40 YEARS DOING UNTOLD DAMAGE TO AMERICA
GOOD NEWS THE WORD IS OUT! 

The Nation Magazine has an update about recent  ALEC activities.  It is a must read in my opinion. It illustrates how ALEC has gone unchecked for over 40 years...they spent a lot of time scheming & planning--sorta correlates to when this country started moving to the right and going into a death spiral FIND OUT WHAT CORPORATIONS SUPPORT ALEC...go to their web sites locate the "contact" info and start sending emails, letters and tweets, we now know who these people are. They are not operating under a cloak of secrecy anymore. We need to let them know that we will boycott their products, expose them and disgrace them hit them in their pocketbooks that is what will stop them there may be 1% of them but there are 99% of us and if we refuse to continue spending our $$$ with them we can hurt them and begin to take back our country ....
http://tinyurl.com/nxel3kn



YOU MIGHT NEED TO GIVE UP A FEW CUTE CAT VIDEOS BUT IF YOU CARE ANYTHING ABOUT WHO IS CONTROLLING THE LAWS IN THIS COUNTRY 
 "By changing the laws one State at a time"
MAKE SURE TO WATCH THIS VIDEO - The United States of ALEC   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0CaOhS7wJg

Published on Oct 1, 2012
September 28, 2012: Moyers & Company presents "United States of ALEC," a report on the most influential corporate-funded political force most of America has never heard of -- ALEC, the American Legislative Exchange Council. A national consortium of state politicians and powerful corporations, ALEC presents itself as a "nonpartisan public-private partnership." But behind that mantra lies a vast network of corporate lobbying and political action aimed to increase corporate profits at public expense without public knowledge.

"United States of ALEC" is a collaboration between Okapi Productions, LLC and the Schumann Media Center, headed by Bill Moyers, which supports independent journalism and public watchdogs including the Center for Media and Democracy, whose investigators are featured in the report.

Using interviews, documents, and field reporting, the episode explores ALEC's self-serving machine at work, acting in a way one Wisconsin politician describes as "a corporate dating service for lonely legislators and corporate special interests."

In state houses around the country, hundreds of pieces of boilerplate ALEC legislation are proposed or enacted that would, among other things, dilute collective bargaining rights, make it harder for some Americans to vote, and limit corporate liability for harm caused to consumers -- each accomplished without the public ever knowing who's behind it.

"United States of ALEC" is a collaboration between Okapi Productions, LLC and the Schumann Media Center, headed by Bill Moyers, which supports independent journalism and public watchdogs including the Center for Media and Democracy, whose investigators are featured in the report.

 THE BEST WAY TO DEFEAT ALEC AND STOP THE REPUBLICANS IS TO USE THE  LIST OF COMPANIES THAT SUPPORT ALEC 

This link provides a list of companies that support ALEC-Please write, phone, send messages on FB and Twitter telling them to stop supporting ALEC


this is an update of companies that have dropped out of ALEC 

YOU CAN TAKE ACTION BY LETTING YOUR VOICE BE HEARD & NOT GIVING YOUR MONEY TO THESE CORPORATIONS - $$$ IS THE ONLY THING THEY WILL LISTEN TO....

WE ALL NEED TO COME TOGETHER

The following links will provide you a lot of information & products to boycott.

In addition Koch Brothers are a major source of funding for ALEC. ALEC has been very instrumental in getting legislation like the Stand Your Ground law that gave George Zimmerman the license to shoot an unarmed 17 year old youth, passed all over America. 
 you can read about it here: 

ALEC Exposed is full of great information about just who ALEC is:

Another Koch Brothers crony you should know about. Art Pope


Koch Brothers evil ways have been evolving for over 50 years in America. There are even ties to Nazi Germany that are really creepy
you can read about it here: 
http://unknownjournal.wordpress.com/2010/10/06/%E2%96%BC-report-the-kochs-their-nazi-past-american-oil-the-foundation-of-republican-ideology/


The following links will provide you a lot of information & products to boycott.

http://inspirationgreen.com/koch-brothers-products.html

http://www.boycottkochbrothers.com/

Koch Brothers' Products  -- We're Surrounded.








Lots!  LisFind Koch Products Heret of koch brothers products


































   
Georgia-Pacific also distributes paper towels, napkins and soap dispensing systems used in commerical settings. Some GP commercial toilet paper brands: Envision, Coronet®, SCA, Tork and Fort James. GP produces Pacific Garden liquid soaps...

Friday, October 6, 2017

Guns, GUNS, then even more Guns!-will it ever change?



Even after all the horrific loss of lives by killers with guns -
the fact that the NRA has a stranglehold on politicians we will not have Gun Control til we have  Campaign Finance Reform...we must replace & vote out any politician that votes for their own personal gain and not for the welfare of ALL Americans!

Amendment II
"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

Nowhere does it state that the people have a right to an arsenal. Nor does it state that the government does not have the right to establish regulations.  I don't think the Founding Fathers could have ever imagined how this "freedom" would be used over 200 years later.
And did we not establish a Militia when we instituted  the National Guard?  So why would ordinary citizens need to be armed?   
Personally I am fed up with the NRA and their constant assault on the rest of us Americans  in denying us our
 “RIGHT TO LIFE AND THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS” 
all in their proclamation that they are protecting their 2nd Amendment Rights to buy as a many guns... any kind of gun that they choose  with no restrictions putting the rest of us in fear…and yes, even terrorizing us by having these little staged events where they get to trot out their “weapons and say hey look at me…I am a coward, I have no balls or real courage, but I have a gun!  

We have  Police who are making videos showing people how to shoot politicians, 


And then his follower goes after the citizens who protest his actions

Man Opens Fire At Pennsylvania Town Meeting, At Least Three People Killed, Others Wounded

Read more: http://www.addictinginfo.org/2013/08/06/three-killed-in-pennsylvania-town-meeting-shooting/#ixzz2bmN6yJVg

The NRA scares me more today than the threat of Communism we were faced with as children in the 50’s….

or the nuclear bomb threat that taught us to take cover under our desks for protection….

WELL GUESS WHAT?  As a child my desk was not going to protect me from a nuclear attack, and it does not protect today’s children from crazed gunmen armed to the hilt with automatic weapons and what seems like unlimited rounds of ammunition.  




On December 14, 2012, 20-year-old Adam Lanza fatally shot twenty children and six adult staff members in a mass murder at Sandy Hook Elementary School

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


HAS THIS COUNTRY GONE START RAVING MAD!  I understand people who live in remote areas and farmers and ranchers  needing rifles for protection and sometimes in relation to the work they do…I do not understand someone in a city or town with police a few minutes away needing a gun to protect themselves.  Women have been assaulted even though they had guns… having a gun in your house while getting attacked while taking your garbage out is not going to offer a lot of protection…plus most people are not that willing to just take another persons’ life,…we BLINK! 

have you ever looked into the eyes of a stone cold killer?  Their eyes are dead like they have no soul...

 A bad person/criminal will not BLINK! BANG BANG you are dead and probably with your own weapon.  All a gun does is give a coward a false sense of bravado…in men they think  their teeny little weenies are bigger…but get out your rulers fellas, it is still the same size and you are still a coward.  And do these NRA types really and truly believe they stand a chance going against the UNITED STATES ARMED FORCES AND THE STATE NATIONAL GUARD AND ALL THE STATE AND LOCAL POLICE…

Why do you think that the military and police have to train their recruits "how to kill".... how not to BLINK! and become the victim.  How to know and identify a criminal from an innocent bystander?  


in case the NRA as not heard we ELECT our government by voting!


 You don’t get to wage war against your government just because you did not like that a Black Man was elected President.  





The 2nd Amendment needs to be amended (I would prefer "repealed" but I am trying to be reasonable in an unreasonable situation)  .  There needs to be a solution that reasonable people can arrive at.  This issue is driven by the NRA and weapons manufacturers...it is all about the Benjamins! And not the one named Franklin!

Thursday, October 5, 2017

Campaign Finance Reform & Political Term Limits

WE NEED CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM, HONESTY & TERM LIMITS...

originally published September 2013...I am revisiting this as of 9/5/2019 



I HOPE THIS MESSAGE IS WORTH YOUR TIME AND IT IS WORTH YOUR TIME EXPLORING THE LINKS








...We desperately need to begin to work on these two key area of politics in America. We need to get Corporations Out of Politics.

The following are some thoughts I have...I would love feedback & suggestions because I feel I really need it, I don't have all the answers, but together maybe we can find some.

LIES, DECEIPT, FANTASY AND OTHER CHARACTERISTICS OF POLITICIANS

The following question posed by a gentleman on twitter got me to thinking

As long as we're entertaining fantasies, what about insisting that policy debates stay reality based. Is that too much to ask?

NO! it is not too much to ask. It should be a given. I have become so cynical about the ability of any politician, even my own party & who I voted for, to be truthful about anything, I find myself making decisions based who told the least offensive lies-and that is so wrong. The very least a person that wants the taxpayers to pay his/her wages should be is HONEST.  What business or corporation would hire a "liar" or someone who lives in a "fantasy world"? I suspect that if that company is not making movies or in the entertainment industry...the answer would be NONE. So why do we VOTE these people into office and pay them so well to lie to us, deceive us and not do what is best for US The citizens of America?

POLITICAL TERM LIMITS

Being a politician should not be a lifelong career.  It should be temporary employment at best.  A longer single term, (6 years sounds reasonable to me) would mean no need to ever spend time that should be spent solving the problems facing our country with campaigning.  It would mean a 40 hour work week, like most average Americans, that is 2,080 hours a year. Think what could be accomplished..  

Benefits paid for should be on par with what is required of other employers. 

Payment into a pension plan should be the same as other employers  have. So much is deducted at the employees choice as to percentage with a % match by the employer. 

Health Insurance should be provided the same as with other employers.  It would not hurt to have the politician to pay for a portion of the insurance coverage. A lot of companies and public institutions pay for individual employee coverage with the employee paying a portion of the family coverage.  I know that is the way it is done at the school district I retired as Bookkeeper from.

One term and they are gone from that position and they do not get to come back as a lobbyist.  The get to go apply for another job somewhere else.  Maybe then a healthy robust job market will become important.

Campaign Finance Reform

I know this is a biggie.  But we must stop the ability of corporations and the wealthy from being able to buy our politicians.  If an individual from Illinois want to represent Illinois as a Congressperson, then the funding for that persons campaign needs to come solely from the individual citizens  of  the area/district that person wants to represent. No outsiders (in other words keep it local) and no corporate contributors.  Campaign ads should only contain the face and voice of the person running for that position and they should only be funded by their campaign contributions.  The media needs to give candidates a set number of free ads for both candidates.  A series of debates should be scheduled & supported by the media to allow candidates to get their message out.  This would be a great way for the media to support our country.

DO AWAY WITH ALL PACS

REPEAT..."No Corporate Contributors"


Which brings me to this section....

It is mind boggling to try and keep up with all the companies we buy goods and products from...those that are ethical, those that are not.  It seems that we as taxpayers and consumers cannot count on companies to be honest, ethical and caring on their own. .  Why do these companies have the money to spend billions of dollars lobbying, and spending to buy politicians instead of doing the 'RIGHT THING" Invest in your workers, invest in your country, invest in the Earth.  Instead they choose to:

  • Exploit their workers
Paying their employees a living wage with health insurance and vacation and sick day benefits and pension plan.  All of these perks are considered "cost of doing business " and will lower their tax rates.
  • Hide their obscene profits in tax shelters to avoid supporting their country
Take the billions of dollars that are spent buying politicians and and invest it in your country.  Why not get your tax cuts at home rather than hiding your money in tax shelters in other countries? 

  • Pollute the Earth

Energy efficient investments are also a cost of doing business and will lower your tax rate.  If companies keep raping the planet for obscene get rich quick profits and polluting the air, land and water, their families and future generations will suffer too. Mother Nature has a way of cleaning house.  I think that process is already beginning.  The lives lost to hurricanes, floods, tornadoes ...etc...

It is time that we begin to demand better from these companies.  It is time we insist that our politicians do what is best for America and not the bottom line of corporations.  This means changes in the tax codes and more vigorous funding of the budgets for the FDA and the EPA and OSHA! 

NONE OF THIS WILL HAPPEN IF WE DO NOT START WITH POLITICAL TERM LIMITS AND CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM- It all goes hand in hand in hand.






Sunday, November 3, 2013

The Republican Pledge & Oath of Office



The Republican Pledge

I pledge allegiance to the Corporate Flag
And to the Republic of Koch Industries
For which it stands
One Nation under Money
Indivisible
With liberty & justice for the Rich


Congressional Republican Oath of Office
    I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and 
    defend the Constitution of ALEC against all enemies, foreign 
    and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to
     the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any
     mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well
     and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I 
    am about to enter: So help me KOCH BROTHERS