Hey Obama supporters! We are having phone banking right here at the house every Wednesday 7 – 8 pm. The campaign provides the cell phones, call lists, instructions. It’s fun. This is significant, important work and we need your help. Surrounded by friends it’s painless. Come for pot luck at 5:45, participate in the salon conversation, and then peel off with me for phone banking... Or stay at the table and talk. For more info. On my phone bank experiences, see below in the maroon section, Events and Opportunities.
Salon Weekly
~ In 4 Color-Coded Sections:
- Table Notes
- Events & Opportunities
- Articles, Letters (“opinions expressed are not necessarily mine”...ellen)
- Books, Reviews, Films, Magazines
- Tri-State Treasures: compiled by Jim Kesner
A Weekly Email Publication of The Lloyd House: Circulation: 650. Growing out
of the Wednesday Night Salon . For info about the Salon, see the bottom of
this email. Join us at the Lloyd House every week of the year at 5:45 for pot
luck and discussion. 3901 Clifton Avenue Cincinnati, Ohio. To Submit events
for the Weekly, send (not attachment) me email, subject line
"Weekly-Events:(description)", in Times New Roman font, Maroon color. FOR ARTICLES, send me, in Times New Roman, Navy color. to ELLENBIERHORST@LLOYDHOUSE.COM,. Saves me a
lot of work that way. Send submissions by Wednesday evening.
To: Friends on our Pot Luck Salon list (c. 600)... Now in our
seventh year),
(to unsubscribe see below, bottom of page).
................................................... Section One: Table Notes ............................................................................ (Note: these notes were taken at the table and have NOT been approved or corrected by the speakers. Reader beware of inevitable misunderstandings and misrepresentations. E.B.)
At the table Wednesday 10/1/08
Ginger Lee Frank, Marvin Kraus, Gerry Kraus, Mr. G. Rob Nedewaab, Mira Rodwan, Brooke Audreyal, Janet Kalven, Karen Wissel, Spencer Konicov, Ellen Bierhorst, Al Geiser, Sandra Geiser, Derek Lester, Vlasta Molak, Mark Rassmussen, Carolyn Aufdehaar
Preamble read by Ellen
From L to R: Ellen w/ glasses; Ginger Lee Frank waving, Rob N., Mira, Gerry, Mr. G., Marvin, Janet, Karen...
Suggested topics: Issue 6, the economic bail out,
Issue 6: a casino gambling scheme for Ohio. For state treasury. But there is no guarantee they will pay anything in casino tax. No watch dog, no enforcement. One casino near Wilmington, Oh. Will abrogate all laws including zoning law that would prohibit the casino.
At this point it was time to do phone banking for Obama so I left the table along with Sandra, Al, Karen, and Rob. We made dozens of calls from 7 to 8. So cool!
~ End of Table Notes~
- Hugs to everyone,
Ellen
Section Two: Events & Opportunities
Hey Obama supporters! We are having phone banking right here at the house every Wednesday 7 – 8 pm. The campaign provides the cell phones, call lists, instructions. It’s fun. This is significant, important work and we need your help. Surrounded by friends it’s painless. Come for pot luck at 5:45, participate in the salon conversation, and then peel off with me for phone banking... Or stay at the table and talk.
Well last night there were 6 of us calling, and we were able to call all the folks on the lists Jackie gave us. Wonderful! It is so much more fun doing it with friends here at the house than at the HQ with strangers. It is getting easier and easier for me. Please come and join us for phone bank next Wednesday. Come for the salon/pot luck, at 5:45, or just come at 7 for the phone bank. Ellen
JEANNE NIGHTINGALE SENDS THIS:
- Subject: this takes seconds. IMPORTANT
PLEASE do something!
This just takes seconds, I promise. And pass it around, please!.
Takes 3 seconds.
Let's turn this around!!!
PBS has a short poll on their Web site that asks: Is Sarah Palin qualified to be VP?
When I voted 54% were saying YES!!! (I just voted and it was 49%-49%. Come on! ellen)
Let's turn this around..... You don't have to give your name or email address in order to vote. It's very simple.
PLEASE VOTE NO!
Here's the link:
Think about it: “President Obama gives inaugural address”; “President Obama gives State of the Nation”; “President Obama meets with world leaders”. President Obama giving Kennedy style press conferences. This is going to be so cool. Picture it. Imagine it. Enjoy imagining it. Manifest it!
Thanks to Julie Murray for forwarding this idea. Our thoughts are powerful.
What is Issue 5, and what does it have to do with economic justice?
- Every year over 300,000 Ohioans are trapped in a debt cycle with Payday lenders, opening new loans to repay the last loan due to the high interest rates and fees.
- Payday Lenders currently charge up to 391% annual interest on hardworking Ohioans
- The State Legislature passed a law to cap that interest rate at 28%, but Payday Lenders are working to put Issue 5 on the ballot to repeal this.
- A YES vote on Issue 5 in November will protect the 28% interest rate cap on Payday Loans.
5 Opportunities to take action on Issue 5 next week and stop this cycle of debt!
Phonebank - Sunday Sept. 28th, 7-9pm <http://www.americavotes.org/page/event/detail/phonebank/jtw>
Ice Cream social
Phonebank - Monday Sept. 29th, 5:30-8pm <http://www.americavotes.org/page/event/detail/phonebank/jrt>
After calling voters we’ll head over to Northside Tavern and hang out.
Canvass - Wednesday Oct. 1st, 5:30-7:30 <http://www.americavotes.org/page/event/detail/canvass/jw9>
Talk to voters door to door!
Phonebank - Thursday Oct. 2nd, 5:30-8pm <http://www.americavotes.org/page/event/detail/phonebank/jw2>
Make calls, then watch the Vice Presidential Candidate Debate!
Day of Action - Saturday, October 4th, 10am-2pm <http://www.americavotes.org/page/event/detail/canvass/jt4>
Knock on doors and talk to voters face to face about the issues! Finish up with lunch with fellow progressives.
Events are located at 2300 Montana Ave (map <http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=2300%20Montana%20Ave,%20Cincinnati,%20O.H.%2045211&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=60.551768,108.984375&ie=UTF8&ll=39.158068,-84.571402&spn=0.007354,0.013304&z=16> )
RSVP to Randy at 513-481-7100 or mwilson@americavotes.org <mailto:mwilson@americavotes.org>
Working for a progressive Ohio,
Cincinnati America Votes Team – Lauren, Luke and Randy
P.S. Check out our new blog <http://www.americavotes.org/page/content/cincinnati/> to see what we’re up to and see pictures of democracy in action!
Paid for By America Votes for Working Families
To sign up for the Obama voter protection program, go to http://my.barackobama.com/page/s/vpcvol2
Ohio voters: visit Obama’s Voter Registration and Registration Checker Site
Ellen --
<http://my.barackobama.com/page/m2/55c137c8/6bf3ea11/723e248e/1188ab1a/VEsH/> In Ohio, you know how few votes it can take to tip an election. You probably also know more than one Buckeye who isn't registered to vote.
The registration deadline on October 6th is fast approaching.
Tell your friends, family, and neighbors to check out our new, one-stop voter registration website. <http://oh.barackobama.com/OHregister>
...
Thanks for everything you are doing in Ohio,
Barack
<http://my.barackobama.com/page/m2/55c137c8/6bf3ea11/723e248e/1188ab15/VEsF/>
Hi Ellen and all: Thanks for a great time on Tuesday (at the Lloyd House drum circle, final Tues. each month). I am planning a drum constuction workshop cincinnati Oct 11th. It would be nice if you would spread the word. I will plan to finish up before the hafla at the Center for World Rhythm and Movement 7:30.
More info. about the workshops can be found at my website www.richspiritdrums.com
Also, I will begin instructing a flute making course November 3rd.
Thanks
Rich Spirit Borthwick
888-622-3786
10,000 drummers, hands a blazin
Tired of the same old political yard signs? Get your own custom political yard sign.
Choose from some already painted on view at: http://tomlohre.com/protest.htm <http://tomlohre.com/protest.htm> or make up your own saying and graphic idea and Tom will paint it. All signs are $40, delivery extra, 28" x 22", waterproof, gloss latex on poster board, painted on one side, sandwiched with a same size backing board and place over a wire frame suitable for placing in your yard. Tom will show the signs at Sitwell's Coffee House, Clifton, Cincinnati, Ohio in October. Call him at 513-236-1704 for more information.
Everyone needs a psychologist sometime in their life.
Ellen Bierhorst Ph.D. is a good one. In practice over 30 years. 513 221 1289
Areas of particular interest: 12 Step Program support; Family and Relationship issues; Young Adult Issues; Chronic Illness and Senior Adult Issues; Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgendered Issues, Holistic Wellness (body/mind/spirit approach), Clinical Hypnosis, EMDR.
- Get a fresh perspective. Sort out tangles in interpersonal relationships. Clear away the messes of the past. Become empowered to launch your new life. Heal trauma, change, loss. Escape from the bondage of addictive behavior(alcohol, drugs, food, tobacco, gambling, etc.)
- Central location (Clifton Ave. at Lafayette)
- Beautiful setting (The historic Lloyd House)
- Many health insurance plans will pay a percentage. (Standard fee $125/hour. Some pro bono work available.)
- Compassion and good humor.
- Rapid results.
I welcome you - everyone! - to attend the first presentation and signing of our new CD "Meditations for Expectant Mothers and the Life Within." Please visit the website below for more information.
Hope to see you there!
www.aquariusstar.com
Fanchon Shur
Director, Growth in Motion,Inc
www.growthinmotion.org
4019 Red Bud Ave.
Cincinnati, Oh. 45229
513-221-3222
fanchon@growthinmotion.org
Join Freedom singers
Rehearsals 2nd and 4th Tuesdays at 6:30, at Freedom Center (free parking bottom of Walnut St.)
Cathy Roma and Todd O’Neal directing.
Wonderful Spirituals music.
IJPC events this week:
Find these below
IJPC Annual Meeting; Benefit Rights Meeting; Robert Kennedy; Northside Peace Vigil; Al Gore’s TED Talk http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/al_gore_s_new_thinking_on_the_climate_crisis.html; Claiming our Faith; REMINDER: FINAL DAY TO REGISTER; Cincinnati’s Nuclear History
DETAILS BELOW
Thursday October 2
Benefit Rights Meeting
Contact Center 1227 Vine St
12-1:30 pm
This is a potluck. Child care is available but people need to RSVP 1st to let us know if they will need child care.
For more information, contact:
Lynn Williams lwilliams@zoomtown.com
Thursday October 2
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr – Our Environmental Destiny
Xavier University, Cincinnati OH – Schiff Family Conference Center
7:00 pm -9:00 pm
Registration: Complimentary tickets are required for the Kennedy Lecture. A ticket request form is available at www.xavier.edu/ers/lecture
Cost: FREE—registration required
Description: E/RS Lecture Series 2008-2009 on Ecology and Sustainability: Global Climate Change
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has made a reputation for himself as a resolute defender of the environment. Mr. Kennedy serves as senior attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council, chief prosecuting attorney for the Hudson Riverkeeper and president of Waterkeeper Alliance.
For More Information on the E/RS program and this lecture series, contact:
E/RS co-directors Kathleen Smythe at 513-745-3279 or Elizabeth Groppe at 513-745-3734 or e-mail ers@xavier.edu.
Friday October 3
Northside Peace Vigil
Hamilton Avenue at Hoffner Park (Blue Rock and Hamilton)
4:30 pm – 5:30 pm
Show your support for peace and human rights. You may bring signs on the theme of peace or anti-torture or anything related, or just bring yourself to stand with us ~ we will have extra signs for those who would like to hold them.
For more information on the Women In Black peace movement, please visit: http://www.womeninblack.org
For more information, please contact Elizabeth Motter at 591-1407 or emotter@fuse.net
Friday October 3
Al Gore’s TED Talk: “New Thinking on the Climate Crisis” http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/al_gore_s_new_thinking_on_the_climate_crisis.html (this is a terrific talk. Short. Watch it. Ellen)
6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
The Imago Earth Center - located at 700 Enright Ave., Cincinnati, OH
Imago's First Friday Conversation: October 3
Topic, Energy. The program begins with a 20 minute video, Al Gore's TED Talk, "New Thinking on the Climate Crisis."
The 2008-2009 season of First Friday Conversations at Imago's Earth Center kicks off on October 3 at 6:00 PM with a year-long theme, Enhancing Earth by Getting "Off the Grid." Drawing on a broad understanding of 'the grid," we'll look at many aspects of unplugging from the current models of growth and consumption.
As always, each Conversation will begin at 6:00 PM at Imago with a catered vegetarian dinner from PIP. The suggested cost of dinner is $10, but if that stretches your budget, pay what you can. Program and discussion begin at 6:45.
For more information or directions to the Imago Earth Center, go to: www.imagoearth.org or call 513-921-5124
Saturday October 4
CLAIMING OUR FAITH IN TIMES OF TRANSITION
9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Cedars Auditorium, Sisters of Charity Motherhouse, 5900 Delhi Rd
Presenter: Barbara Fiand, SNDdeN
Fee: $40 (Includes lunch.) Paid in full at time of registration
Scholarships available
Register early as space is limited.
To register or for more information:
Call 513-347-5449, visit http://www.srcharitycinti.org/spirit.htm, or email spirituality.center@srcharitycinti.org
REMINDER!!!!
Monday October 6
Final day to register to vote in Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky
Information on registration or voting places:
Brown County Board of Elections: 937-378-3008 and 866-368-3598
Butler County Board of Elections: 513-887-3700
Clermont County Board of Elections: 513-732-7275
Hamilton County Board of Elections: 513-632-7000
Tuesday October 7
Cincinnati’s Nuclear History
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Rohs St. Cafe, 345 W. McMillan, Cincinnati, Ohio
Carol Rainey will discuss and sign copies of her book “One Hundred Miles from Home: Nuclear Contamination in the Communities of the Ohio River Valley”
For more information:
Email cyndellpress@fuse.net
YOGA at Lloyd House. Wednesdays 9:15 – 10:30 am. Open, free practice group led by Nina Tolley.
Articles
- Ginger Lee Frank on the return of PR voting in Cincinnati
- PBS does health care crisis
- Well made youtube film: Israelis for Obama
- Mark Rasmussen sends link: Obama winning according to sports bet analyst: http://fivethirtyeight.com
- 200 economists oppose the bailout
- On the bailout, by Jeanette Raichyk and by Michael Moore
- Vivien Klein sends Wash Post article on Bailout: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/30/AR2008093000450.html
- -
Although admitting that the current so-called 9X system of electing City Council has in the past permitted one party take over of council without a majority of the votes as well as the exclusion of various minorities and viewpoints, and that the current system could equally enable single party take over and exclusion in the future, Gerry and Marvin pooh-poohed PR at the table Wednesday evening saying that the current City Council has women and African Americans as well as Dems and Repubs, so why should we even consider switching back to PR; we don't need it (then refused to take a copy of the single-page handout I'd written on the subject). Aside from the likelihood that PR voting would promote increased voter participation at a time when it is declining here and around the country, I have to say G& M's attitude struck me as though a resident of New Orleans anytime in the 20 years before Katrina said "I know what has happened in the past and that it could happen in the future but for now everything's alright so why should I consider an improved system for protecting New Orleans from an extreme climate situation? We don't need it." Is it better to wait until the next political emergency and then try to fix it? Here's the handout, for any interested.
Return proportional representation to Cincinnati
for fair representation and good government.
By ginger lee frank
"The fairest system of voting yet devised for the choice of a
body of representative public officers"– Cincinnati Enquirer
One of the longest and most successful applications of proportional representation (also called preference voting, ranked choice voting and instant runoff voting) in municipal elections in U.S. history was begun in 1925 in Cincinnati, Ohio. It’s purpose was to break the grip of a corrupt political monopoly controlled by the local Republican party machine, and it worked, opening up the political process to minority candidates (including women and racial, ethnic and religious minorities) and parties. The first African American was elected to Cincinnati City Council in 1931, thanks to proportional representation (PR), and throughout the 1940s and early 1950s there was continual black representation on Council – at least one and sometimes two members (at a time when Detroit, with a much larger black population than Cincinnati, but with a winner-take-all, at large election system, had yet to have black representation on its Council).
Ohio led the country in adopting PR back in 1915 when it was voted in by Ashtabula, followed by Cleveland in 1921, Cincinnati in 1925, Hamilton in 1926 and Toledo in 1935. In 1936, New York City adopted PR to break the stranglehold of the Tammany Hall Democratic Party machine.
Although Cincinnati’s local Republican Party organization tried many times to defeat proportional representation, Cincinnatians employed it effectively for the next 32 years. In several cities, adopting PR caused the political machines to quickly lose their majorities and their grip on power. After its transition to PR, Cincinnati went from a city with one of the worst reputations for corruption to one that won praise for the integrity and professionalism of its city government. During that period Fortune magazine ranked Cincinnati as the best-governed city in America and even the Cincinnati Enquirer praised the system.
"The people of Cincinnati can be grateful for proportional representation. It enables them to vote with the certain knowledge that their ballots count, and count for some candidate who needs those particular votes. It gives us a council fairly divided between parties, and well balanced as among racial, religious and economic groupings. It is the fairest system of voting yet devised for the choice of a body of representative public officers.” – Cincinnati Enquirer editorial, 1935
African American Theodore Berry served on Council from 1949 until 1957, when, amid Republican warnings that he would become the city’s first black Mayor if PR were not repealed, nervous voters returned the winner-take-all system for electing Council members, still in use today. Once PR was repealed, no African Americans were elected to Council in the next three elections. Even the respected and popular Berry lost his seat.
Over the years powerful political forces employed referenda to repeal PR or block its return around the country, as political parties sought partisan control and voters have not always been so open to political diversity. In the 1970s, ‘80s and ‘90s, Berry and others worked to return PR to Cincinnati elections, joined in 1995 by former fellow Council member, John Gilligan, who also served in the US Congress and as Governor of Ohio, but to no avail. Only Cambridge, MA (the site of Harvard, University) has withstood repeal pressure and employed proportional representation continuously for nearly 70 years (actually modeled on Cincinnati’s government in the 1930s). So it can be said that Cincinnati’s system of proportional representation is still in use, just not in Cincinnati.
Proportional representation is used by the vast majority of European countries and many other countries in the world, and is employed by all the European Union countries for European Parliament elections. But it is not yet widely employed in the US (although it may be remembered as the system used for presidential primaries by the Democratic Party). This year Cincinnati voters again have an opportunity to return preference voting to municipal elections with a ballot referendum supported by over 15,000 petition signatures.
What exactly is proportional representation or preference voting ?
The term proportional representation actually refers to a collection of voting systems all intended to more accurately and fairly represent the electorate in proportion to actual numbers, more so than the winner-take-all systems currently in use in most of the US. Because every one in the country cannot fit into one hall and all speak out for or against various points-of-view, representatives must be elected to speak for them and represent their views. In the current application of majority rule through winner-take-all elections, alternative viewpoint representation unfortunately is often significantly reduced.
In the election prior to the adoption of PR in Cincinnati, the Republicans received all but one of the seats on Council, but had won hardly more than of half the votes. In the first PR election, the results were much more proportional, with the Republicans winning three of the nine seats on Council (33.3%) based on 28% of the vote, and the rival reform Charter party winning six of the seats (66.7% ) with 64% of the vote. Last year, without PR, six of the nine candidates elected to Council won their seats with less than 45% of the voters’ support, not even a majority.
Proportional representation also encourages fairer ethnic and racial representation. It produced the first Irish Catholics elected in Ashtabula, and the first Polish-Americans elected in Toledo. In Cincinnati, Hamilton, and Toledo, African-Americans had never won city offices until PR. Significantly, after these cities abandoned PR, African-Americans again found it almost impossible to get elected.
Evidence shows that proportional representation also minimizes wasted votes. The ballot transfer process of preference voting ensures that most people will cast effective votes – that is votes that actually elected someone to office. In Cincinnati, the number of effective votes improved dramatically, from an average of 56% in the three pre-PR elections to an average of 90% for the 16 PR elections.
Opponents of proportional representation in Cincinnati had forecast a steep drop in voter turnout with PR, claiming voters would be discouraged by complicated ballots and vote counting procedures. In fact, PR did not depress turnout. However, with the current declining voter enthusiasm, it is hoped that by empowering voters with more effective choice, PR will help reinvigorate electorate participation.
How does proportional representation preference voting work?
Proportional representation (PR) does not jeopardize majority-rule democracy; it merely ensures minority representation as it protects majority control. Any group of voters that numbers more than one-tenth of the total population can be sure of electing at least one member of a nine-member Council, while a majority group of voters can be sure of electing a majority of the Council.
In a PR City Council election you may vote for as many candidates as there are on Council (up to nine), but you must indicate the order of your preference among the various candidates for whom you vote. That’s all there is to it. If there are only three candidates you would like to see elected, vote only for those three, but rank them by first, second and third preference. Once any candidate receives enough votes to assure election, extra votes for that candidate move on to their voters’ next choice, until that candidate has enough votes for election, and the unneeded votes are then counted for their voters’ third choice, and on it goes until Council is elected. Even if nearly 90% of the electorate all want candidates who share the same opinion, that remaining ten percent of the voters can successfully elect a Council member with a different opinion. So the voters’ wishes are represented in proportion to their actual numbers: that’s proportional representation. It can take a little longer to find out all who have been elected, but with PR, a little patience goes a long way.
Don’t be confused or scared by PR’s opponents. As the Enquirer editorial went on to advise, “Wise citizens will not be misled by false charges that PR is unfair or impractical." It was true then and it still is. Join the Cincinnati Business Courier, Ohio Common Cause, Ohio Citizen Action, Cincinnati ACORN, NAACP, the Green and Libertarian Parties and countless individuals from Jim Tarbell and Christopher Smitherman to Marian Spencer, Bobbie Sterne and Tyrone Yates, in supporting the return of preferential voting to the City of Cincinnati. Vote “Yes” on Issue 8.
“It was PR that allowed me to first get elected and it’s PR that we need to provide fair representation for everyone in our community”
– Ted Berry, former Mayor of Cincinnati
Roger Weisberg's Critical Condition is a powerful, eye-opening look at the health care crisis in America. In an election season when health care reform has become one of the nation's most hotly debated issues, Critical Condition lays out the human consequences of an increasingly expensive and inaccessible system. Using the same cinema verite style he employed with Waging a Living (P.O.V., 2006), Weisberg allows ordinary hard-working Americans to tell their harrowing stories of battling critical illnesses without health insurance.
Critical Condition premieres (premiered) on September 30, 2008 at 9PM on PBS.
Check out http://www.pbs.org/pov/pov2008/criticalcondition/about.html
200 economists oppose the bailout
(This letter was sent to Congress on Wed Sept 24 2008 regarding the Treasury plan as outlined on that date. It does not reflect all signatories views on subesquent plans or modifications of the bill)
To the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate:
As economists, we want to express to Congress our great concern for the plan proposed by Treasury Secretary Paulson to deal with the financial crisis. We are well aware of the difficulty of the current financial situation and we agree with the need for bold action to ensure that the financial system continues to function. We see three fatal pitfalls in the currently proposed plan:
1) Its fairness. The plan is a subsidy to investors at taxpayers’ expense. Investors who took risks to earn profits must also bear the losses. Not every business failure carries systemic risk. The government can ensure a well-functioning financial industry, able to make new loans to creditworthy borrowers, without bailing out particular investors and institutions whose choices proved unwise.
2) Its ambiguity. Neither the mission of the new agency nor its oversight are clear. If taxpayers are to buy illiquid and opaque assets from troubled sellers, the terms, occasions, and methods of such purchases must be crystal clear ahead of time and carefully monitored afterwards.
3) Its long-term effects. If the plan is enacted, its effects will be with us for a generation. For all their recent troubles, America's dynamic and innovative private capital markets have brought the nation unparalleled prosperity. Fundamentally weakening those markets in order to calm short-run disruptions is desperately short-sighted.
For these reasons we ask Congress not to rush, to hold appropriate hearings, and to carefully consider the right course of action, and to wisely determine the future of the financial industry and the U.S. economy for years to come.
Signed (updated at 9/27/2008 6:00PM CT)
Acemoglu Daron (Massachussets Institute of Technology)
Ackerberg Daniel (UCLA)
Adler Michael (Columbia University)
Admati Anat R. (Stanford University)
Ales Laurence (Carnegie Mellon University)
Alexis Marcus (Northwestern University)
Alvarez Fernando (University of Chicago)
Andersen Torben (Northwestern University)
Baliga Sandeep (Northwestern University)
Banerjee Abhijit V. (Massachussets Institute of Technology)
Barankay Iwan (University of Pennsylvania)
Barry Brian (University of Chicago)
Bartkus James R. (Xavier University of Louisiana)
Becker Charles M. (Duke University)
Becker Robert A. (Indiana University)
Beim David (Columbia University)
Berk Jonathan (Stanford University)
Bisin Alberto (New York University)
Bittlingmayer George (University of Kansas)
Blank Emily (Howard University)
Boldrin Michele (Washington University)
Bollinger, Christopher R. (University of Kentucky)
Bossi, Luca (University of Miami)
Brooks Taggert J. (University of Wisconsin)
Brynjolfsson Erik (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
Buera Francisco J.(UCLA)
Cabral Luis (New York University)
Camp Mary Elizabeth (Indiana University)
Carmel Jonathan (University of Michigan)
Carroll Christopher (Johns Hopkins University)
Cassar Gavin (University of Pennsylvania)
Chaney Thomas (University of Chicago)
Chari Varadarajan V. (University of Minnesota)
Chauvin Keith W. (University of Kansas)
Chintagunta Pradeep K. (University of Chicago)
Christiano Lawrence J. (Northwestern University)
Clementi, Gian Luca (New York University)
Cochrane John (University of Chicago)
Coleman John (Duke University)
Constantinides George M. (University of Chicago)
Cooley, Thomas (New York University)
Crain Robert (UC Berkeley)
Culp Christopher (University of Chicago)
Da Zhi (University of Notre Dame)
Darity, William (Duke University)
Davis Morris (University of Wisconsin)
De Marzo Peter (Stanford University)
Dubé Jean-Pierre H. (University of Chicago)
Edlin Aaron (UC Berkeley)
Eichenbaum Martin (Northwestern University)
Ely Jeffrey (Northwestern University)
Eraslan Hülya K. K.(Johns Hopkins University)
Fair Ray (Yale University)
Faulhaber Gerald (University of Pennsylvania)
Feldmann Sven (University of Melbourne)
Fernandez, Raquel (New York University)
Fernandez-Villaverde Jesus (University of Pennsylvania)
Fohlin Caroline (Johns Hopkins University)
Fox Jeremy T. (University of Chicago)
Frank Murray Z.(University of Minnesota)
Frenzen Jonathan (University of Chicago)
Fuchs William (University of Chicago)
Fudenberg Drew (Harvard University)
Gabaix Xavier (New York University)
Gao Paul (Notre Dame University)
Garicano Luis (University of Chicago)
Gerakos Joseph J. (University of Chicago)
Gibbs Michael (University of Chicago)
Glomm Gerhard (Indiana University)
Goettler Ron (University of Chicago)
Goldin Claudia (Harvard University)
Gordon Robert J. (Northwestern University)
Greenstone Michael (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
Gregory, Karl D. (Oakland University)
Guadalupe Maria (Columbia University)
Guerrieri Veronica (University of Chicago)
Hagerty Kathleen (Northwestern University)
Hamada Robert S. (University of Chicago)
Hansen Lars (University of Chicago)
Harris Milton (University of Chicago)
Hart Oliver (Harvard University)
Hazlett Thomas W. (George Mason University)
Heaton John (University of Chicago)
Heckman James (University of Chicago - Nobel Laureate)
Henderson David R. (Hoover Institution)
Henisz, Witold (University of Pennsylvania)
Hertzberg Andrew (Columbia University)
Hite Gailen (Columbia University)
Hitsch Günter J. (University of Chicago)
Hodrick Robert J. (Columbia University)
Hollifield Burton (Carnegie Mellon University)
Hopenhayn Hugo (UCLA)
Hurst Erik (University of Chicago)
Imrohoroglu Ayse (University of Southern California)
Isakson Hans (University of Northern Iowa)
Israel Ronen (London Business School)
Jaffee Dwight M. (UC Berkeley)
Jagannathan Ravi (Northwestern University)
Jenter Dirk (Stanford University)
Jones Charles M. (Columbia Business School)
Jovanovic Boyan (New York University)
Kaboski Joseph P. (Ohio State University)
Kahn Matthew (UCLA)
Kaplan Ethan (Stockholm University)
Karaivanov Alexander (Simon Fraser University)
Karolyi, Andrew (Ohio State University)
Kashyap Anil (University of Chicago)
Keim Donald B (University of Pennsylvania)
Ketkar Suhas L (Vanderbilt University)
Kiesling Lynne (Northwestern University)
Klenow Pete (Stanford University)
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On the bailout: Jeanette Raichyk and Michael Moore
So, this morning's news activity says that 'the empire is striking back' with exaggerated threats about our own vulnerability to corporate damaging... heard one broadcast yesterday in preparation for this new bailout attempt that was claiming that if we didn't bailout Wallstreet's crooks we would find our own creditworthy attempts to do our normal business impaired... even used a cinci car-dealer and truck-buyer as the example of being unable to do normal business because of the credit freeze. Gee, how horrible, but maybe good, not that they admitted. They were implying that the House vote to stop the bailout was just a preparation for a 'better bill' that would surely pass... still pay the crooks.,, er I mean CEOs.
So I went looking to see where Lee Iacocca is today, and found his website which shows his developing opinion that this country is headed for disaster and that this bailout is EXTORTION. He's unfortunately kind of elderly and fragile probably.
The idea that Iacocca had the pride in his work to promise to deliver results with only a ONE DOLLAR A YEAR salary plus stock options to guarantee decent progress at Chrysler is so revealing of the sort of people (shysters as would have been my immigrant mother's term) that are currently at the controls in this country. And Chrysler's Iacocca was only asking for a loan guarantee, not treasury funds, and was offering the treasury stock ownership for the guarantee.
Last night's online streamed TV broadcast of Nader's Q&A at a SF event, was a total defiant success in getting around the media blackout on the voices of the opposition to corporatized govt control in this country.
And this morning's broadcast email from Mike Moore (whose socialist campaign we do not support but monitor for information which he does remarkably well) still had another piece of the puzzle on this bailout's demonic dimension. It wasn't just the mortgage debacle that undid the finance world. And we saw it happen right in our own neighborhood. The medical bills that people are getting dumped on their plate which they seldom fight, are the #1 reason why people default on their mortgages. The home just 5 lots away from ours was lost to its former owners because of medical-insurance and big-pharma bills exceeding their ability to pay.
So there's an even wider tangle of problems than just misbegotten mortgages (which was bad enough). The American middle class has been majorly duped and bilked and the top controllers of that operation in insurance and finance should be labeled what they are... shysters to be shown the door, not given golden parachutes, consultancy fees and other bloodsucking benefits. WallStreet Journal already reported that Giuliani for one is 'offering' his personal firm's consulting services [pay expected], other financial geniuses are wangling to get their special 'instruments' included with mortgages, and other assorted bloodsucking plans.
How can any country afford this orgy of bloodsucking, especially with our current bankrupt situation, in Iraq, in oil, in failing infrastructure capabilities, in mounting disasters.
The latest word from insiders in Congress says that the direction of the 'improved' bailout still is simply unbelievable pandering to criminal greed. We can contact Sherrod Brown or Voinovich or any candidate you want, I just think it's only the internet's voice that will spread the truth about what this amounts to... EXTORTION, plain and simple.
Can it be stopped? Don't know. Can we begin to reorganize our homes and operations to put the squeeze on the bloody-taxes and manage to weather the failing infrastructure? Possibly among our groups, we can work ideas out.
As for the possibility that we could influence the media to cover the opinions of the other parties and make the current corporate-selected candidates DEBATE -- really debate ideas to solve these problems -- would really be nice to see whether that would be as effective nationally as it was in Wisconsin and California where the voters were awakened and voted in large numbers [47% in CA] for non-corporate candidate's ideas. It seems the real stumbling block is OBAMA, who has consistently refused to take the gauntlet presented by civic groups around the country to debate Ralph Nader. He's a sniveling wet-noodle coward. Of course McCain has a history of trying to backout after he promised to debate, even just his corporate-selected opposite in a corporate orchestrated event. They appear both shyster-types.
But we'll have to pick one, and it has to be the one whose party is not in power in the House or Senate so we can play one against the other when the times get really tenuous for our rights and taxes. Since my last check of the stats analysts, it looks like the rubber-chicken democrats are the likely holders of the legislative branch, so that means the presidency has to be republican. Maybe we can damage the corporate-controllers that have been tying Palin's tongue lately as evident in some of her verbal stumbling to the extent that her otherwise literate self cannot complete a sentence without mangling the sense out of it. The rough and ready culture of the Idaho mountains and Alaska outback is not any more vicious than the 'civilized' wallstreet polished culture, just different, ya know, diversity? . Watch for any sign of a concealed earpiece in the VP debates, we hear that her 'handlers' will be opting for a 'down' hairdo to cover the prompting device... what a hoot!!!!! Too bad she is so willing to co-operate, at least for the time being. She was reluctant to take that spot in the beginning. Unlike Cheney who was responsible for vetting W's running mate selection and lo and behold, selected himself!! He's such a criminal. Frankly I think it was a Rove plot.
Wish Palin well. She is the last hope in this strategy, if she gets free enough.
TTYL
Jeanette
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MichaelMoore.com : The Rich Are Staging a Coup This Morning ...a message from Michael Moore
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/message/index.php?id=235
Monday, September 29th, 2008
The Rich Are Staging a Coup This Morning ...a message from Michael Moore
Friends,
Let me cut to the chase. The biggest robbery in the history of this country is taking place as you read this. Though no guns are being used, 300 million hostages are being taken. Make no mistake about it: After stealing a half trillion dollars to line the pockets of their war-profiteering backers for the past five years, after lining the pockets of their fellow oilmen to the tune of over a hundred billion dollars in just the last two years, Bush and his cronies -- who must soon vacate the White House -- are looting the U.S. Treasury of every dollar they can grab. They are swiping as much of the silverware as they can on their way out the door.
No matter what they say, no matter how many scare words they use, they are up to their old tricks of creating fear and confusion in order to make and keep themselves and the upper one percent filthy rich. Just read the first four paragraphs of the lead story <http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/22/business/22lobby.html> in last Monday's New York Times and you can see what the real deal is:
"Even as policy makers worked on details of a $700 billion bailout of the financial industry, Wall Street began looking for ways to profit from it.Unbelievable. Wall Street and its backers created this mess and now they are going to clean up like bandits. Even Rudy Giuliani is lobbying for his firm to be hired (and paid) <http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2008/09/25/2008-09-25_rudy_giulianis_crass_opportunism_reflect.html> to "consult" in the bailout.
"Financial firms were lobbying to have all manner of troubled investments covered, not just those related to mortgages.
"At the same time, investment firms were jockeying to oversee all the assets that Treasury plans to take off the books of financial institutions, a role that could earn them hundreds of millions of dollars a year in fees.
"Nobody wants to be left out of Treasury's proposal to buy up bad assets of financial institutions."
The problem is, nobody truly knows what this "collapse" is all about. Even Treasury Secretary Paulson admitted he doesn't know the exact amount that is needed (he just picked the $700 billion number out of his head!). The head of the congressional budget office said he can't figure it out nor can he explain it to anyone.
And yet, they are screeching about how the end is near! Panic! Recession! The Great Depression! Y2K! Bird flu! Killer bees! We must pass the bailout bill today!! The sky is falling! The sky is falling!
Falling for whom? NOTHING in this "bailout" package will lower the price of the gas you have to put in your car to get to work. NOTHING in this bill will protect you from losing your mortgage or access to short-term money. NOTHING in this bill will give you protection from massive medical bills.
Health insurance? Mike, why are you bringing this up? What's this got to do with the Wall Street collapse?
It has everything to do with it. This so-called "collapse" was triggered by the massive defaulting and foreclosures going on with people's home mortgages. Do you know why so many Americans are losing their homes? To hear the Republicans describe it, it's because too many working class idiots were given mortgages that they really couldn't afford. Here's the truth: The number one cause of people declaring bankruptcy is because of medical bills <http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/02/business/02insure.html> . Let me state this simply: If we had had universal health coverage, this mortgage "crisis" may never have happened.
This bailout's mission is to protect the obscene amount of wealth that has been accumulated in the last eight years. It's to protect the top shareholders who own and control corporate America. It's to make sure their yachts and mansions and "way of life" go uninterrupted while the rest of America suffers and struggles to pay the bills. Let the rich suffer for once. Let them pay for the bailout. We are spending 400 million dollars a day on the war in Iraq. Let them end the war immediately and save us all another half-trillion dollars!
I have to stop writing this and you have to stop reading it. They are staging a financial coup this morning in our country. They are hoping Congress will act fast before they stop to think, before we have a chance to stop them ourselves. So stop reading this and do something -- NOW! Here's what you can do immediately:
1. Call <http://www.visi.com/juan/congress/cgi-bin/newmemberbio.cgi?lang=&member=ILJR&site=ctc&address=&city=&state=IL&zipcode=&plusfour=> or e-mail Senator Obama <http://my.barackobama.com/page/s/contact2> . Tell him he does not need to be sitting there trying to help prop up Bush and Cheney and the mess they've made. Tell him we know he has the smarts to slow this thing down and figure out what's the best route to take. Tell him the rich have to pay for whatever help is offered. Use the leverage we have now to insist on a moratorium on home foreclosures, to insist on a move to universal health coverage, and tell him that we the people need to be in charge of the economic decisions that affect our lives, not the barons of Wall Street.
2. Take to the streets. Participate <http://truemajority.wiredforchange.com/event/distributedEventCalendar.jsp> in one of the hundreds of quickly-called demonstrations that are taking place all over the country (especially those near Wall Street and DC).
3. Call your Representative in Congress and your Senators. (click here to find their phone numbers <http://www.votesmart.org/official_congress.php?dist=bio.php> ). Tell them what you told Senator Obama.
When you screw up in life, there is hell to pay. Each and every one of you reading this knows that basic lesson and has paid the consequences of your actions at some point. In this great democracy, we cannot let there be one set of rules for the vast majority of hard-working citizens, and another set of rules for the elite, who, when they screw up, are handed one more gift on a silver platter. No more! Not again!
Yours,
Michael Moore
MMFlint@aol.com
MichaelMoore.com <http://www.michaelmoore.com/>
P.S. Having read further the details of this bailout bill, you need to know you are being lied to. They talk about how they will prevent golden parachutes. It says NOTHING about what these executives and fat cats will make in SALARY. According to Rep. Brad Sherman of California, these top managers will continue to receive million-dollar-a-month paychecks under this new bill. There is no direct ownership given to the American people for the money being handed over. Foreign banks and investors will be allowed to receive billion-dollar handouts. A large chunk of this $700 billion is going to be given directly to Chinese and Middle Eastern banks. There is NO guarantee of ever seeing that money again.
P.P.S. From talking to people I know in DC, they say the reason so many Dems are behind this is because Wall Street this weekend put a gun to their heads and said either turn over the $700 billion or the first thing we'll start blowing up are the pension funds and 401(k)s of your middle class constituents. The Dems are scared they may make good on their threat. But this is not the time to back down or act like the typical Democrat we have witnessed for the last eight years. The Dems handed a stolen election over to Bush. The Dems gave Bush the votes he needed to invade a sovereign country. Once they took over Congress in 2007, they refused to pull the plug on the war. And now they have been cowered into being accomplices in the crime of the century. You have to call them now <http://www.votesmart.org/official_congress.php?dist=bio.php> and say "NO!" If we let them do this, just imagine how hard it will be to get anything good done when President Obama is in the White House. THESE DEMOCRATS ARE ONLY AS STRONG AS THE BACKBONE WE GIVE THEM. CALL CONGRESS NOW <http://www.votesmart.org/official_congress.php?dist=bio.php> .
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