Month: March 2017

SAUL ALINSKY ~ RULES FOR RADICALS ~ 1989

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~ TATAPRCS-WTSBOAPR-ITAFTIIP ~ To Assume That A Political Revolution Can Survive – Without The Supporting Base Of A Popular Reformation – Is To Ask For The Impossible In Politics

~ GH-O-BP-AATNC-YBTD ~ Go Home – Organize – Build Power – And At The Next Convention – You Be The Delegates

~ YMKTPO ~ You Must Keep The Pressure On

~ GDAAGO ~ Great Dangers Always Accompany Great Opportunities

~ TPODITOPOTCGBAOTP ~ The Price Of Democracy Is The Ongoing Pursuit Of The Common Good By All Of The People

~ DITEOHF ~ Dogma Is The Enemy Of Human Freedom

~ DMBWFAAAETAT ~ Dogma Must Be Watched For And Apprehended At Every Turn And Twist

~ NISBMST-‘FTGW’ ~ No Ideology Should Be More Specific Than – “For The General Welfare”

~ TFSO-I-L-R-F-FFTSOD ~ The Free-Society Organizer – Is – Loose – Resilient – Fluid – Free From The Shackles Of Dogma

~ TBRFTUOTPOCITRTWAII-OMBFOTWOIOS-MOUVTWNAIIBAWWLITB ~ The Basic Requirement For The Understanding Of The Politics Of Change Is To Recognize The World As It Is – One Must Break Free Of The Web Of Illusions One Spins – Most Of Us View The World Not As It Is But As We Would Like It To Be

~ ITWAII-TSOEPICANO-TANPHOSE ~ In The World As It Is – The Solution Of Each Problem Inevitably Creates A New One – There Are No Permanent Happy Or Sad Endings

~ TDOAPA ‘P’O‘N’ITMOAPI ~ The Description Of Any Procedure As “Positive” Or “Negative” Is The Mark Of A Political Illiterate

~ CMM-MMF ~ Change Means Movement – Movement Means Friction

~ OCWTEOMAEVIODFTSOC ~ One’s Concern With The Ethics Of Means And Ends Varies Inversely With One’s Distance From The Scene Of Conflict

~ IOLTLOACAIPOOOM-TTEQWNA-ATLMBEWAMS ~ If One Lacks The Luxury Of A Choice And Is Possessed Of Only One Means – Then The Ethical Question Will Never Arise – Automatically The Lone Means Becomes Endowed With A Moral Spirit

~ TLITETBD-TMOCATEIEEOM ~ The Less Important The End To Be Desired – The More One Can Afford To Engage In Ethical Evaluations Of Means

~ AEMIAJBTOABU ~ Any Effective Means Is Automatically Judged By The Opposition As Being Unethical

~ IO-TMNITS-HTBCI-TLP ~ In Organizing – The Major Negative In The Situation – Has To Be Converted Into – The Leading Positive

~ TMOPOSSAFNLTAFW ~ The Masterpieces Of Philosophic Or Scientific Statement Are Frequently No Longer Than A Few Words

~ TTO-C-IAKABW-IIAPITPOO ~ To The Organizer – Compromise – Is A Key And Beautiful Word – It Is Always Present In The Pragmatics Of Operations

~ ASDOCIT ~ A Society Devoid Of Compromise Is Totalitarian

~ CITECOAFAOS ~ Conflict Is The Essential Core Of A Free And Open Society

~ TFOAOITRQ-TA-TBTTAP ~ The Function Of An Organizer Is To Raise Questions – That Agitate – That Break Through The Accepted Pattern

~ CAIGT ~ Curiosity And Irreverence Go Together

~ HIETAST-FTMPWKTMASAR ~ Humor Is Essential To A Successful Tactician – For The Most Potent Weapons Known To Mankind Are Satire And Ridicule

~ AOMA-WFOW-TTAAAA ~ An Organizer Must Accept – Without Fear Or Worry – That The Odds Are Always Against

~ TOICCTNOOTO ~ The Organizer Is Constantly Creating The New Out Of The Old

~ OCLAOTQOAO-WOE-TAOC ~ One Can Lack Any Of The Qualities Of An Organizer – With One Exception – The Art Of Communication

~ IDNMWYKAAIYCCTYP-ITDU-TYANC ~ It Does Not Matter What You Know About Anything If You Cannot Communicate To Your People – If They Don’t Understand – Then You Are Not Communicating

~ POUTITOTE-WMTYMGWTE ~ People Only Understand Things In Terms Of Their Experience – Which Means That You Must Get Within Their Experience

~ CIATWP-IYTTGYIATOWPATWTHTSTY-YCFATWT ~ Communication Is A Two-Way Process – If You Try To Get Your Ideas Across To Others Without Paying Attention To What They Have To Say To You – You Can Forget About The Whole Thing

~ YDCWAPOTRFOEOAI ~ You Don’t Communicate With Anyone Purely On The Rational Facts Or Ethics Of An Issue

~ THATA-AT-TBOTVMALTADAP ~ The Haves Are The Authorities – And Thus – The Beneficiaries Of The Various Myths And Legends That Always Develop Around Power

~ IPFTDHTPTCABS-TDNTAI ~ If People Feel They Don’t Have The Power To Change A Bad Situation – They Do Not Think About It

~ IIJAIFPTFU-MLAT-ATNI ~ It Is Just About Impossible For People To Fully Understand – Much Less Adhere To – A Totally New Idea

~ TFOC-I-OOODF-ANIMBATLCITLOPI ~ The Fear Of Change – Is – One Of Our Deepest Fears – A New Idea Must Be At The Least Couched In The Language Of Past Ideas

~ SOCAI-RTAT-FUTIC-PANCETA ~ Search Out Controversy And Issues – Rather Than Avoid Them – For Unless There Is Controversy – People Are Not Concerned Enough To Act

~ NOCNWTPTCN-TATOOAGW-RTOAPB-WBTASTTWHNYE ~ No One Can Negotiate Without The Power To Compel Negotiation – To Attempt To Operate On A Good-Will – Rather Than On A Power Basis – Would Be To Attempt Something That The World Has Not Yet Experienced

~ TOIBOTIATIABOOTO-OMBBOMI-ONAAAINO ~ The Organization Is Born Of The Issues And The Issues Are Born Out Of The Organization – Organizations Must Be Based On Many Issues – Organizations Need Action As An Individual Needs Oxygen

~ AEOEIAMAEPFTOAIIFTP ~ An Effective Organizational Experience Is As Much An Educational Process For The Organizer As It Is For The People

~ WL-WERTDOTP-TTCBDTERTPFITSTTOP ~ We Learn – When We Respect The Dignity Of The People – That They Cannot Be Denied The Elementary Right To Participate Fully In The Solutions To Their Own Problems

~ DOTOFPITDOHDAD ~ Denial Of The Opportunity For Participation Is The Denial Of Human Dignity And Democracy

~ EINP-WTLP-TBOAOB-STSOOPGFA ~ Education Is Not Propaganda – Without The Learning Process – The Building Of An Organization Becomes – Simply The Substitution Of One Power Group For Another

~ TCBNPFPS-B-TSSRR-IITPTAOMC ~ There Can Be No Prescriptions For Particular Situations – Because – The Same Situation Rarely Recurs – It Is The Principles That An Organizer Must Carry

~ UTPOTLBMTEOIOR ~ Use The Power Of The Law By Making The Establishment Obey Its Own Rules

~ TTIUMPTTTI ~ The Threat Is Usually More Powerful Than The Tactic Itself

~ EOMHTOTSPWATBTE-IA-‘T’-LOCTTE ~ Every Organization Must Have Two Or Three Stool Pigeons Who Are Trusted By The Establishment – Invaluable As – “Trustworthy” – Lines Of Communication To The Establishment

~ MJ-UTPOOPOTPSAAP ~ Mass Jujitsu – Utilizing The Power Of One Part Of The Power Structure Against Another Part

~ THPAITAPBP-OWTFOLP-TEMIDBTIOKI ~ The Haves Possess And In Turn Are Possessed By Power – Obsessed With The Fear Of Losing Power – Their Every Move Is Dictated By The Idea Of Keeping It

~ TEWITTBA-IO-S ~ The Error Was In Trying To Boycott All – Instead Of – Some

~ CMO-TPOOPOTH-AIOP-ICTS ~ Calculated Maneuvering Of – The Power Of One Part Of The Haves – Against Its Other Parts – Is Central To Strategy

~ TITTWIITEIL-TDBSAF ~ Timing Is To Tactics What It Is To Everything In Life – The Difference Between Success And Failure

~ AMJOTOITIDTRFAWHTPBAOIA-PARGAAMAP ~ A Major Job Of The Organizer Is To Instantly Develop The Rationale For Actions Which Have Taken Place By Accident Or Impulsive Anger – Possessing A Rationale Gives Action A Meaning And Purpose

~ TTICOOTFFOAAR-AR-AEAOAD ~ The Tactic Itself Comes Out Of The Free Flow Of Action And Reaction – And Requires – An Easy Acceptance Of Apparent Disorganization

SAUL ALINSKY ~ THE RULES OF POWER TACTICS ~ RULES FOR RADICALS ~ 1989

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~ PINOWYH-B-WTETYH ~ Power Is Not Only What You Have – But – What The Enemy Thinks You Have

~ NGOTEOYP-TRI-C-F-A-R ~ Never Go Outside The Experience Of Your People – The Result Is – Confusion – Fear – And – Retreat

~ WPGOOTOTE-C-C-F-A-R ~ Whenever Possible Go Outside Of The Experience Of The Enemy – Cause – Confusion – Fear – And – Retreat

~ MTELUTTOBOR ~ Make The Enemy Live Up To Their Own Book Of Rules

~ RITMPW-IIAITCR ~ Ridicule Is [The] Most Potent Weapon – It Is Almost Impossible To Counterattack Ridicule

~ AGTIOTYPE ~ A Good Tactic Is One That Your People Enjoy

~ ATTDOTLBAD ~ A Tactic That Drags On Too Long Becomes A Drag

~ KTPO-WDTAA-AUAEOTPFYP ~ Keep The Pressure On – With Different Tactics And Actions – And Utilize All Events Of The Period For Your Purpose

~ TTIUMTTTTI ~ The Threat Is Usually More Terrifying Than The Thing Itself

~ TMPFTITDOOTWMACPUTO ~ The Major Premise For Tactics Is The Development Of Operations That Will Maintain A Constant Pressure Upon The Opposition

~ IYPANHADEIWBTIIC ~ If You Push A Negative Hard And Deep Enough It Will Break Through Into Its Counterside

~ TPOASAIACA-YCRBTB-SAAS-‘WDKWTD’ ~ The Price Of A Successful Attack Is A Constructive Alternative – You Cannot Risk Being Trapped By – Sudden Agreement And Saying – “We Don’t Know What To Do”

~ P-TT-FI-PI-A-PI ~ Pick – The Target – Freeze It – Personalize It – And – Polarize It

JOHN MICHAEL GREER ~ DARK AGE AMERICA ~ 2016

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~ TDMBTLETTTECGABTNEIALBDAMTD-I-TBAUBOTEAAW-AUHBWHFITFOEG ~ The Dishonest Macroeconomic Bookkeeping That Leads Economists To Think That Externalized Costs Go Away Because They’re Not Entered Into Anyone’s Ledger Books Doesn’t Actually Make Them Disappear – Instead – They Become An Unrecognized Burden On The Economy As A Whole – An Unfelt Headwind Blowing With Hurricane Force In The Face Of Economic Growth

~ TMODAAGMOFOFW-ST-TR-AEIC ~ The Manufacture Of Derivatives And A Great Many Other Forms Of Fictive Wealth – Subtract Those – The Result – An Economy In Contraction

~ TIRITPJ-TEOMNAETMCEOAI-A-TODIIALSAATCTLATFW-AMOT-ATTSS ~ The Intractable Rise In The Permanently Jobless – The Epidemic Of Malign Neglect Affecting Even The Most Crucial Elements Of America’s Infrastructure – And – The Ongoing Decline In Income And Living Standards Among All Those Classes That Lack Access To Fictive Wealth – Among Many Other Things – All Tell The Same Story

~ IFFSTATPWJDOI-ATWUTCFCTTCO-AIWATNOPWATTEID ~ It’s Far From Surprising That All The People Whose Jobs Depend On Intermediation – All The Way Up The Corporate Food Chain To The Corner Offices – Are Increasingly Worried About The Number Of People Who Are Trying To Engage In Disintermediation

~ T-‘F’-M-I-OC-NOTK-IC-IE-TWWTAAPFTGLFSOW-TFTEOOOTMHBHAWILP-IIHSBABLIOBF-IJOOTMDTMLI ~ The – “Free” – Market – Is – Of Course – Nothing Of The Kind – It’s Compulsory – It’s Expensive – Those Who Want To Abstain Are Perfectly Free To Go Looking For Some Other Way – The Fact That Every Option Outside Of The Market Has Been Hedge Around With Impenetrable Legal Prohibitions – If It Hasn’t Simply Been Annihilated By Legal Fiat Or Brute Force – Is Just One Of Those Minor Details That Make Life Interesting

~ ACSAOAIZ-TEUWAHBOUI-SBAIFFOPA ~ A Complex Society At Or After Its Zenith – Typically Ends Up With A Huge Burden Of Unproductive Intermediaries – Supported By An Increasingly Fragile Foundation Of Productive Activity

~ TF-IIAF-TTVMOHS-ICC-HGBJFWMOAKBRIOCI ~ The Fact – It Is A Fact – That The Vast Majority Of Human Societies – Including Complex Civilizations – Have Gotten By Just Fine Without Money Of Any Kind Barely Registers In Our Collective Imagination

~ TGE-IWMOACGTEPTOMOTSCITETTGWBR-IIC ~ The Gift Economy – In Which Members Of A Community Give Their Excess Production To Other Members Of The Same Community In The Expectation That The Gift Will Be Reciprocated – Is Immensely Common

~ IIVETDIAME-AWAKFPE-TICSCFFWSTCTP ~ Intermediation Is Very Easy To Do In A Money Economy – As We All Know From Personal Experience – The Intermediaries Can Simply Charge Fees For Whatever Service They Claim To Provide

~ WMG-IF-TOOTUROPE ~ Where Money Goes – Intermediation Follows – That’s One Of The Unmentionable Realities Of Political Economy

~ TLOPAETTLOEACNBBNB ~ The Laws Of Physics And Ecology Trump The Laws Of Economics And Can Neither Be Bribed Nor Bought

~ ITGASAA-ABSFOGCWCTF-AITPWHTGASNTMTTWG-TSIT ~ If The Goods And Services Aren’t Available – A Basement Safe Full Of Gold Coins Won’t Change That Fact – And If The People Who Have The Goods And Services Need Them More Than They Want Gold – The Same Is True

~ TOAVHADIASWTROLHBD:TAVTWADRDF ~ Tokens Of Abstract Value Have Another Disadvantage In A Society Where The Rule Of Law Has Broken Down: They Attract Violence The Way A Dead Rat Draws Files

~ EHSLTTTICCAIP-WTHTB-ATBAAEAOHE ~ Every Human Society Likes To Think That Its Core Cultural And Intellectual Projects – Whatever Those Happen To Be – Are The Be-All And End-All Of Human Existence

~ TTBIPLTTONTAROOO-IAMCFRNTTBLOEO ~ Though True Believers In Progress Like To Think Of New Technologies As Replacements For Older Ones – Its Actually More Common For New Technologies To Be Layered Over Existing Ones

~ WSAOOICIOCPTACOS-TSNTT-ATH-ATWTWAAWCATTOTC ~ When A Society Assigns One Of Its Core Intellectual Or Cultural Projects To A Community Of Specialists – Those Specialists Need To Think – And Think Hard – About The Way Their Words And Actions Will Come Across To Those Outside That Community

~ TWATWTBOSRATDRRTPAWATP-BTTHLSP-TD-TBORADMUTSL-WTCANCMD ~ There Was A Time When The Benefits Of Scientific Research And Technological Development Routinely Reached The Poor As Well As The Privileged – But That Time Has Long Since Passed – These Days – The Benefits Of Research And Development Move Up The Social Ladder – While The Costs And Negative Consequences Move Down

~ TPOTSPBBIHBAOS-TD-IAFWSCICWSM-SSAIJADOM-FIRBPTPTNODSTGTUC-TTSCO-‘O’-DTDSTC ~ The Prostitution Of The Scientific Process By Business Interests Has Become An Open Scandal – These Days – In Any Field Where Science Comes Into Contact With Serious Money – Scientific Studies Are Increasingly Just Another Dimension Of Marketing – From Influential Researchers Being Paid To Put Their Names On Dubious Studies To Give Them Unearned Credibility – To The Systematic Concealment Of – “Outlying” – Data That Doesn’t Support The Claims

~ TTOT ~ The Twilight Of Technology

~ RTARSOPBITTPDE-ADTWD-IOOHATBC ~ Responding To A Rising Spiral Of Problems By Insisting That The Problems Don’t Exist – And Denouncing Those Who Demur – Is One Of History’s All-Time Bad Choices

~ ASCCBMTTI-DAMES-IBPUBASOFGWADRTSAM ~ A Strong Case Can Be Made That The Internet – Doesn’t Actually Make Economic Sense – It’s Being Propped Up By A Set Of Financial Gimmickry With A Distinct Resemblance To Smoke And Mirrors

~ TTPWWIDC ~ Talk To People Who Work In Data Centers

~ DCANCTR-TAMTOT-A-TOOPOTVIWCTI ~ Data Centers Are Not Cheap To Run – There Are Many Thousands Of Them – And – They’re Only One Part Of The Vast Infrastructure We Call The Internet

~ ALATPCOACCIAAAFTBI-TCT ~ As Long As The Political Class Of A Civilization Can Inspire Admiration And Affection From Those Below It – The Civilization Thrives

~ L-E-S-S – Less – Energy – Stuff – Stimulation

~ WLPTPAWDAFCBA-OEAOALS ~ We’re Long Past The Point At Which Decline And Fall Can Be Avoided – Or Even Ameliorated On Any Large Scale

~ IBSBTOSOETIBPTPFAFWH ~ It’s By Stepping Beyond That Overdeveloped Sense Of Entitlement That It Becomes Possible To Plan For A Future Worth Having

~ CF&ATR ~ Collapse First And Avoid The Rush

~ LGOTDOOOUEUTLFTPAAMIETSASOTUCNTHSMATRTOP ~ Letting Go Of The Delusion Of Our Own Uniqueness Enables Us To Learn From The Past And Also Makes It Easier To Set Aside Some Of The Unproductive Cultural Narratives That Hamstring So Many Attempt To Respond To Our Predicament

GARY HAUGEN + VICTOR BOUTROS ~ THE 15-70-15 RULE ~ THE LOCUST EFFECT ~ 2014

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~ 15%-IOUTCPAAFPPP ~ 15 Percent – Intent On Using Their Coercive Power And Authority For Purely Predatory Purposes

~ 15%-ITDGATSTP ~ 15 Percent – Intent To Do Good And To Serve The Pubic

~ 70%-SWTSWOTTFIGTPIDTOCAISOR ~ 70 Percent – Simply Waiting To See Which Of These Two Factions Is Going To Prevail In Dominating The Organizational Culture And Its System Of Rewards

GARY HAUGEN + VICTOR BOUTROS ~ THE LOCUST EFFECT ~ 2014

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~ TEOPRTEOV ~ The End Of Poverty Requires The End Of Violence

~ TVSWOV ~ The Vast Subterranean World Of Violence

~ TRIVHFOTS-B-MAOVATPAIH ~ This Reality Is Very Hard For Outsiders To See – Because – Most Acts Of Violence Against The Poor Are Intentionally Hidden

~ AE-SE-O-A-FL-A-T-EM ~ An Entire – Subterranean Economy – Of – Abduction – Forced Labor – And – Torture – Engulfing Millions

~ VIAMAPOWIMTBPA-B-H-S-H-O-J-IF-VIFTPTPPAMCA-IIOOTCRTAPITFP-AOOTPRTSP ~ Violence Is As Much A Part Of What It Means To Be Poor As – Being – Hungry – Sick – Homeless – Or – Jobless – In Fact – Violence Is Frequently The Problem That Poor People Are Most Concerned About – It Is One Of The Core Reasons They Are Poor In The First Place – And One Of The Primary Reasons They Stay Poor

~ SV-OOTMPADSOVATP ~ Sexual Violence – One Of The Most Pervasive And Devastating Sources Of Violence Against The Poor

~ LSDP-SVHSIENACOTDW-T-H-S-A-W-O-A-PO-W-C-A-C-IIOWAGWARV ~ Like Some Dread Plague – Sexual Violence Has Seeped Into Every Nook And Cranny Of The Developing World – The – Homes – Schools – Alleys – Workplaces – Orphanages – And – Places Of – Worship – Commerce – And – Care – It Is Overwhelmingly Women And Girls Who Are The Victims

~ THCBAPO-S-L-B-FTPWAG ~ The Home Can Be A Place Of – Silent – Lawless – Brutality – For The Poorest Women And Girls

~ OOTPRGDGTSITDWISV ~ One Of The Primary Reasons Girls Don’t Go To School In The Developing World Is Sexual Violence

~ SVIAB-EDTAMOPWAROSMAPOACT ~ Sexual Violence Is A Business – Every Day There Are Millions Of People Who Are Raped Or Sexually Molested As Part Of A Commercial Transaction

~ ‘PG’ ~ “Property Grabbing”

~ MOTWPPLICIWTCBSTOOTHAOTLBTINRRKSFADWOTLATP ~ Most Of The World’s Poorest People Live In Circumstances In Which They Can Be Summarily Thrown Out Of Their Homes And Off Their Land Because There Is No Reliable Record Keeping System For Accurately Demonstrating Who Owns The Land And The Property

~ TBEOTSPATACBSAIAITVLS ~ The Best Efforts Of The Struggling Poor And Their Allies Can Be Swept Away In An Instance Through Violent Land Seizures

~ APAAD ~ Abusive Police And Arbitrary Detention

~ TIOLEITDWAAATTV-TIPWTPHBTTTTW-TMPCAPPFTGPIFTOPF ~ The Institutions Of Law Enforcement In The Developing World Are Actually Adding To The Violence – This Is Precisely What The Poor Have Been Trying To Tell The World – The Most Pervasive Criminal And Predatory Presence For The Global Poor Is Frequently Their Own Police Force

~ AD ~ Abusive Detention

~ AGFAPPAATDW-BPUATIJBTPOFC-AAWO-E-M-SA-P-A-OGAS ~ A Great Fear Among Poor People All Around The Developing World – Begin Picked Up And Thrown In Jail By The Police On False Charges – As A Way Of – Extorting – Money – Sex Acts – Property – And – Other Goods And Services

~ FFFIAIAFFW-IIITTEOOTRWTO ~ Freedom From Fear Is As Important As Freedom From Want – It Is Impossible To Truly Enjoy One Of These Rights Without The Other

~ ERSLOPTVTOECBDTPH-EIIIOOTFPA-TDHE ~ Even Relatively Small Losses Of Property Through Violent Theft Or Extortion Can Be Debilitating To Poor Households – Especially If It Is One Of Their Few Productive Assets – They Don’t Have Extras

~ IABIVBV-LU-E-A-ACW-TREIDAW-ATP-MPALTBDUTB ~ If A Breadwinner Is Victimized By Violence – Locked Up – Enslaved – Assaulted – And Can’t Work – The Ripple Effect Is Deep And Wide – Among The Poor – More People Are Likely To Be Dependent Upon That Breadwinner

~ THCOT ~ The Hidden Cost Of Trauma

~ TGDOVII-IITDOTPI ~ The Greatest Devastation Of Violence Is Invisible – It Is The Destruction Of The Person Inside

~ IWCOTLE-NEGPDTHTPWBTS ~ If We Can’t Overcome The Locust Effect – Nothing Else Good People Do To Help The Poor Will Be Truly Sustainable

~ BEPJSITDWI-C/D/D-A-U ~ Building Effective Public Justice Systems In The Developing World Is – Costly / Difficult / Dangerous – And – Unlikely

~ IICTTCNAATLVMBA ~ It Is Certainly True That Cultural Norms And Attitudes That Legitimate Violence Must Be Addressed

~ IDN-E&B-A-‘TEN’-FIWP-CPTPIABWAPWAMCOTTPTNETL-TPACOBTPAPTWOABTMV ~ In Developing Nations – Extortion And Bribery – Are – “The Expected Norm” – For Interactions With The Police – Corruption Places The Poor In A Bidding War Against Perpetrators Who Are Making Counter Offers To The Police To Not Enforce The Law – The Police Are Co-Opted By The Powerful And Put To Work Oppressing And Bullying The Most Vulnerable

~ TSRIT:TPDHPP ~ The Stark Reality Is This: The Poor Don’t Have Police Protection

~ ADD ~ A Dream Devastated

~ CNOTJDS ~ Catastrophic Neglect Of The Justice Delivery System

~ OCTLSICIAFL-TTLOTCP-ANOTPAEE ~ Of Course The Legal System Is Conducted In A Foreign Language – That’s The Language Of The Colonial Power – And Now Of The Political And Economic Elite

~ PJAPL ~ Private Justice And Public Lawlessness

~ EDNNAEPJSTPTFBVBO-B-TMNABPJSTPTFBHAFVO ~ Elites Do Not Need An Effective Public Justice System To Protect Them From Being Victimized By Others – But – They May Need A Broken Public Justice System To Protect Them From Being Held Accountable For Victimizing Others

~ BJSAITTHB-ECJSTIOTM ~ Broken Public Justice Systems Auction Impunity To The Highest Bidder – Effective Criminal Justice Systems Take Impunity Off The Market

~ SV ~ Security Vacuums

~ IC ~ International Crime

~ TTHSCFTIACTRIIPTATLTIUSMOETATP ~ The Time Has Surely Come For The International Aid Community To Revise Its Investment Priorities To Address The Lawlessness That Is Undermining So Many Other Efforts To Assist The Poor

~ STBFJSITDWALTSOWTALLACFWTCTF-OAV-C-C-S-A-SB-TPT-I-S-E-A-SOLLACF ~ Struggles To Build Functioning Justice Systems In The Developing World Are Likely To Succeed Only Where There Are Local Leaders And Community Forces Willing To Carry The Fight – On A Very – Committed – Costly – Sustained – And – Sacrificial Basis – This Priorities The – Identification – Support – Encouragement – And – Strengthening Of Local Leaders And Community Forces

~ TPWITPJSITDWA-GVPP-O-IT-PM-UR-FTSTWAADODL-A-TICO-A-GR-V-A-T ~ The People Working In The Public Justice Systems In The Developing World Are – Generally Very Poorly Paid – Overworked – Ill-Trained – Poorly Managed – Under-Resourced – Forced To Serve The Whims And Arbitrary Demands Of Dysfunctional Leaders – And – Trained In Cultures Of – Abuse – Gratuitous Rudeness – Violence – And – Theft

~ DPOH ~ Demonstrations Projects Of Hope

~ 15-70-15 ~ The 15-70-15 Rule

~ BSD ~ Build Social Demand

~ LF-D-C-RITS ~ Look For – Decisive – Courageous – Reformers Inside The System

~ ACITCJSF ~ Attack Corruption In The Criminal Justice System First

~ CHAEIFPC ~ Clean House And End Impunity For Police Corruption

~ TTNPWR ~ Treat The New Police With Respect

~ WPTTECFAPR ~ Win Public Trust Through Effective Crime Fighting And Public Relations

~ IBTJ ~ International Bridges To Justice

~ JSR ~ Justice Sector Roundtables

~ RAC ~ Rights Awareness Campaigns

~ DRC&TPOLS ~ Defender Resource Centers And The Provision Of Legal Services

~ T-DOT-I-IDO-PA-R-A-P ~ Transformed – Days Of Tragedy – Into – Iconic Days Of – Public Awareness – Remembrance – And – Protest

~ LEOTP ~ Legal Empowerment Of The Poor

~ TTCAGP-WWSOGP-WMSOTVIITP ~ Transform The Conversation About Global Poverty – Whenever We Speak Of Global Poverty – We Must Speak Of The Violence Imbedded In That Poverty

~ TPOVDETW-H-DW-D-I-U-GD-H-S-BFTP-VIEBAD-A-IFTHFUSTTON ~ The Problem Of Violence Deserves Equal Time With – Hunger – Dirty Water – Disease – Illiteracy – Unemployment – Gender Discrimination – Housing – Sanitation – Because For The Poor – Violence Is Every Bit As Devastating – And – Is Frequently The Hidden Force Undermining Solutions To These Other Needs

~ FFVAF ~ Freedom From Violence And Fear

BRUCE BUENO DE MESQUITA + ALASTAIR SMITH ~ THE RULES ~ THE DICTATOR’S HANDBOOK ~ 2011

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~ KYWCASAP-FEEMCACTMDOE ~ Keep Your Winning Coalition As Small As Possible – Fewer Essentials Equals More Control And Contributes To More Discretion Over Expenditures

~ KYNSALAP-MALSOIAYCERATIYC-IAEA ~ Keep Your Nominal Selectorate As Large As Possible – Maintain A Large Selectorate Of Interchangeables And You Can Easily Replace Any Troublemakers In Your Coalition – Influentials And Essentials Alike

~ CTFOR-IABFARTDWETIITHALPFWTPCFT ~ Control The Flow Of Revenue – It’s Always Better For A Ruler To Determine Who Eats Than It Is To Have A Larger Pie From Which The People Can Feed Themselves

~ PYKSJETKTL-YBAOTITYKWTMIATD ~ Pay Your Key Supporters Just Enough To Keep Them Loyal – Your Big Advantage Over Them Is That You Know Where The Money Is And They Don’t

~ DTMOOYSPTMTPLB-TFS-INTBTCTYCOS ~ Don’t Take Money Out Of Your Supporters’ Pockets To Make The People’s Lives Better – The Flip Side – Is Not To Be Too Cheap Toward Your Coalition Of Supporters

BRUCE BUENO DE MESQUITA + ALASTAIR SMITH ~ THE DICTATOR’S HANDBOOK ~ 2011

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~ NLWCGA ~ No Leader Whatsoever Can Govern Alone

~ GDNDIK-TDATDOTSAWC-LLDODAAC-OAC ~ Governments Do Not Differ In Kind – They Differ Along The Dimensions Of Their Selectorates And Winning Coalitions – Labels Like Democracy Or Dictatorship Are A Convenience – Only A Convenience

~ TKBH-ALNM-ECTMF ~ To Keep Backers Happy – A Leader Needs Money – Extraction Can Take Many Forms

~ WEFETBBOUTWOSPC-TD ~ When Essential Followers Expect To Be Better Off Under The Wing Of Some Political Challenger – They Desert

~ MSTBAFSUTECOFAITAMAAC ~ Murder Seems To Be A Favored Solution Under The Extreme Conditions Of Fear And Insecurity That Accompany Monarchic And Autocratic Succession

~ WPSTAAAICTITNOPTWTAB ~ What Politicians Seek To Avoid Are Any Institutional Changes That Increase The Number Of People To Whom They Are Beholden

~ DACIATPFCTPIAD ~ Divide And Conquer Is A Terrific Principle For Coming To Power In A Democracy

~ DAGJINETEPS ~ Doing A Good Job Is Not Enough Ensure Political Survival

~ TTMICOACA:LLL ~ The Three Most Important Characteristics Of A Coalition Are: Loyalty; Loyalty; Loyalty

~ DFSAALTSBMM ~ Debt Forgiveness Simply Allows Autocratic Leaders To Start Borrowing More Money

~ WKTDRAATETIO-DFWTPOSDNW ~ We Know That Debt Relief Allows Autocrats To Entrench Themselves In Office – Debt Forgiveness With The Promise Of Subsequent Democratization Never Works

~ TRTOG:AMTKTCH-B-NTH-A-PJETKTIFRUIR-BNEOTSOSAWCMACOAR ~ The Real Task Of Governing: Allocating Money To Keep The Coalition Happy – But – Not Too Happy – And Providing Just Enough To Keep The Interchangeables From Rising Up In Revolt – Better Not Err On The Side Of Shortchanging Anyone Who Could Mount A Coup Or A Revolution

~ KTFAH-ATMAUTRUAY-ISETHT-S-S-I-P-AAUTR ~ Keep Them Fat And Happy – And The Masses Are Unlikely To Rise Up Against You – It Seems Equally True However That – Sick – Starving – Ignorant – People – Are Also Unlikely To Revolt

~ WMR?-IITGIB-TWANINC-TFATWACTR-TLACAHNRTR ~ Who Makes Revolution? – It Is The Great In-Between – Those Who Are Neither Immiserated Nor Coddled – The Former Are Too Weak And Cowered To Revolt – The Latter Are Content And Have No Reason To Revolt

~ TMRMTAGLFOPRTPOIIITFODOABCTCPSPTGFTP ~ The Most Reliable Means To A Good Life For Ordinary People Remains The Presence Of Institutional Incentives In The Form Of Dependence On A Big Coalition That Compels Power-Seeking Politicians To Govern For The People

~ IDAL? ~ Is Democracy A Luxury?

~ HEPAAPTTA-ASAMSTLEO ~ Highly Educated People Are A Potential Threat To Autocrats – And So Autocrats Make Sure To Limit Educational Opportunity

~ FA-MSOP-LIALC-WAYAFCTTE-IMW ~ For Autocrats – Money Spent On People – Like Infants And Little Children – Who Are Years Away From Contributing To The Economy – Is Money Wasted

~ RAVCTBAIIETHTTC-TMTAGSOG-WITMCTA-B-HACTWCCLT-NRPC-P-E-O-O-TUTA ~ Roads Are Very Costly To Build And It Is Easy To Hide Their True Costs – This Makes Them A Good Source Of Graft – Which In Turn Makes Constructing Them Attractive – But – Having A Country Too Well Connected Can Lead To – New Regional Power Centers – Political – Economic – Or – Otherwise – That Undermine The Autocrat

~ TWMCRAALBASC ~ The World’s Most Corrupt Regimes Are Always Led By A Small Coalition

~ WS:SCAW ~ Wall Street: Small Coalitions At Work

~ MTATDISAOBW ~ More Than A Trillion Dollars Is Spent Annually On Bribes Worldwide

~ LCPTADRITTTCLFG ~ Leaders Can Put Themselves At Dire Risk If They Take Their Coalition’s Loyalty For Granted

~ AIGIEFPCFMRAIFLQ-T-TRPAS ~ Aid Is Given In Exchange For Policy Concessions Far More Readily And In Far Larger Quantities – Than – To Reduce Poverty And Suffering

~ WKTAWMBITPOGG-JAWKTMOTNIGTPWBG ~ We Know That Aid Works Much Better In The Presence Of Good Governance – Just As We Know That More Often Than Not It Goes To Places With Bad Governance

~ MREUSROAWA-OSOTSRCABWTIP ~ Many Revolutions End Up Simply Replacing One Autocracy With Another – On Some Occasions The Successor Regime Can Actually Be Worse Than Its Predecessor

~ OPWTEIRNBSCBD-TSWFTOITBOAE ~ Only People Willing To Engage In Really Nasty Behaviour Should Contemplate Becoming Dictators – The Softhearted Will Find Themselves Ousted In The Blink Of An Eye

~ NAWNRWOLWFARD-TATWMOP-TLHRTRTESWHTETP ~ Nations Awash With Natural Resource Wealth Or Lavished With Foreign Aid Rarely Democratize – They Are The World’s Most Oppressive Places – Their Leaders Have Resources To Reward Their Essential Supporters Without Having To Empower The People

~ JAWDFONL-FA-SBTTTAOPR-ANTIP ~ Just As With Debt Forgiveness Or New Loans – Foreign Aid – Should Be Tied To The Actuality Of Political Reform – And Not To Its Promise

~ WSTPTFNDWWW-NWTW ~ We Seem To Prefer That Foreign Nations Do What We Want – Not What They Want

~ WSNLTQFPBTWTLI ~ We Should Never Let The Quest For Perfection Block The Way To Lesser Improvement

~ EMIIGCRISIITWOPMOPOS ~ Even Minor Improvements In Governance Can Result In Significant Improvements In The Welfare Of Potentially Millions Of People Or Shareholders

~ BTWOMAOLGRBSCOEWALTLWCMTR ~ Behind The World Of Misery And Oppression Lie Governments Run By Small Cliques Of Essentials Who Are Loyal To Leaders Who Can Make Them Rich

~ BTWOFAPLGTDOTBOASCOOP ~ Behind The World Of Freedom And Prosperity Lie Governments That Depend On The Backing Of A Substantial Coalition Of Ordinary People

HAL NIEDZVIECKI ~ TREES ON MARS ~ 2015

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~ OOWTF ~ Our Obsession With The Future

~ CT ~ Chasing Tomorrow

~ LM-LSHWST ~ Language Matters – Language Shapes How We See Things

~ TFNISOML-AOMLSHWTTSLAFIPS ~ The Future-Now Ideology Shapes Our Mental Landscape – And Our Mental Landscape Shapes How We Think Things Should Look And Feel In Physical Space

~ CAPTHTOSATVN ~ Companies Actually Pay To Have Their Offices Stripped Away To Virtually Nothing

~ GTTFBTFGTY ~ Get To The Future Before The Future Gets To You

~ TOOSAD-B-TDSTDA ~ The Odds Of Success Are Daunting – But – This Doesn’t Seem To Deter Anyone

~ TF ~ Teaching Future

~ CFDSITNNA ~ Crusty Fuddy-Duddies Stuck In Time Need Not Apply

~ STEM ~ Science / Technology / Engineering / Math

~ TMIS-TPIAWL0BTFITOTTM ~ The Message Isn’t Subtle – The Past Is A Wasteful Luxury – Building The Future Is The Only Thing That Matters

~ WALTHAPWCFOWCNABIBAED ~ We Are Looking To Hire A Person Who Can Figure Out What’s Coming Next And Build It Before Anyone Else Does

~ TIOPFI(NS)SBSTRITI ~ The Ideology Of Permanent Future Is (Not So) Slowly But Surely Taking Root In The Institution

~ AWTT ~ Again With The Tricorder

~ DH ~ Data Harvest

~ OTFAEII ~ Owning The Future And Everyone In It

~ CRIME ~ Consolidated Records Intelligence Mining Environment

~ ATMWDBPIPITIVECBUAATTFEP ~ Among The Many Ways Data-Based Prediction Is Problematic Is That It Very Easily Can Be Used As A Tool To Further Entrench Prejudices

~ TAAINOCWBPITHCODATTBCOWIC ~ There Are An Increasing Number Of Companies Whose Business Plan Is To Harvest Cast-Off Data And Turn That Bumper Crop Of Weeds Into Cash

~ BDUAETH-IIEATETF ~ Big Data Underpins Almost Everything That Happens – It Is Emerging As The Essential Technological Framework

~ BD-‘ANCOEA’ ~ Big Data – “A New Class Of Economic Asset”

~ KWIGTHIFMETRTEATF-ASCWIGTHIMEOA ~ Knowing What Is Going To Happen Is Far More Efficient Than Responding To Events After The Fact – And Systematically Controlling What Is Going To Happen Is Most Efficient Of All

~ ALOPACANMALOMOOOD-BWANMAC ~ A Lot Of People And Corporations Are Now Making A Lot Of Money Off Of Our Data – But We Are Not Making A Cent

~ EIYWTOOOBD-IWBI ~ Even If You Wanted To Opt Out Of Big Data – It Would Be Impossible

~ OMAVTTPOTF ~ Our Minds Are Vulnerable To The Pull Of The Future

~ PII ~ Psychologically Irresistible Ideology

~ WTMBTI ~ When The Magic Became The Information

~ IOGSCTTCAIICFEOATWWLI-WALFTQF ~ Instead Of Generating Social Certainty Through The Collective Actions Inherent In Caring For Each Other And The World We Live In – We Are Looking For The Quick Fix

~ IITPOPAFPHNBG ~ Interest In The Psychology Of Prediction And Future Perception Has Never Been Greater

~ TFITFAM-ITNP-ITNN ~ The Future Isn’t The Future Any More – It’s The Next Present – It’s The New Now

~ WBOIWACBBOTF ~ We’ve Built Our Incredible Wealth And Comfort By Borrowing On The Future

~ TMBAW-WSTO-FUTKDWWAD ~ There Must Be A Way – We Say To Ourselves – For Us To Keep Doing What We’ve Always Done

~ THR ~ The Human Robot

~ HEID ~ Homo Economicus In Decline

~ UATFINE ~ Uncertainty About The Future Is Now Endemic

~ FSAA ~ Future Shock And Awe

~ AF ~ Anxiety Factory

~ TDTP-TFATR-AJWIWASTPO-TRC ~ They Did Their Part – They Followed All The Rules – And Just When It Was All Supposed To Pay Off – The Rules Changed

~ BTI ~ Biology Trumps Ideology

~ OBHDOACLOS-TKTWHTWBPSTWHY ~ Our Brain’s Health Depends On A Certain Level Of Stability – The Knowledge That What Happens Tomorrow Will Be Pretty Similar To What Happened Yesterday

~ IYDSUYWRMOOWBPLYAGTBDN-CYTTR? ~ If You Don’t Sign Up You Will Risk Missing Out On What Beautiful People Like You Are Going To Be Doing Next – Can You Take That Risk?

~ WWA-MAA-MFO-IOFTTAOC-WFNC-BTWWFTEC-WFBLB-WFLO ~ What We Are – Most Anxious About – Most Fearful Of – Is Our Failure To Take Advantage Of Change – We Fear Not Change – But That We Will Fail To Embrace Change – We Fear Being Left Behind – We Fear Losing Out

~ EFTPF ~ Escape From The Permanent Future

~ TPOH ~ The Problem Of Hope

~ TTOMO-AMFTSMOAWWAWLH(F)EA ~ The Trees-On-Mars Option – A Metaphor For The Singular Moment Of Arrival When We All Will Live Happily (For)Ever After

~ AEFATG ~ An Enthusiasm For All Things Gadget

~ TTF-WINDMI-SDFAAIPOTPTW(T)WSA ~ The Techno-Futurists – Whose Ideas Now Dominate Mainstream Ideology – See Destabilizing Fragmentation As An Inevitable Part Of The Perfect Thing We (They) Will Soon Achieve

~ WDWTBITGBSP3DPITS ~ Who Doesn’t Want To Believe In The Great Big Solar-Powered 3-D Printer In The Sky

~ E-WSTETTGHOFIJATC-A-WAATWTB ~ Everyday – We See The Evidence That The Great Hope Of Future Is Just Around The Corner – And – We Are All Too Willing To Believe

~ ETMWMDSTHTFTGOAGF-CWAHPT-S-S-IAP ~ Even The Most Well-Meaning Devices Seeking To Harness Technology For The Goal Of A Greener Future – Comes With A Hidden Price That – Someone – Somewhere – Is Already Paying

~ IIRTBTWCIOWOOTCTIHFUI? ~ Is It Rational To Believe That We Can Innovate Our Way Out Of The Corner That Innovation Has Forced Us Into?

~ ASHSWLITSOOC-LFTFPOFLMR?-WSLBSTMSOIA-BNCTFPAMIOBW ~ And So How Should We Live In The Shadow Of Ongoing Collapse – Liberated From The False Promise Of Future’s Last Minute Redemption? – We Should Live By Struggling To Make Sense Of It All – By Never Ceasing To Find Purpose And Meaning In Our Broken World

~ TTSOHWGH ~ Tell The Story Of How We Got Here

~ EWDMM-TU-A-TTAU ~ Everything We Do Makes Meaning – To Us – And – To Those Around Us

~ WCCOWTPOP ~ We Can Carry On Without The Pretense Of Pretending

ALDOUS HUXLEY ~ THE DOORS OF PERCEPTION ~ 1954

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~ BWIHEDNH ~ But What I Had Expected Did Not Happen

~ BIHNR-IWE-WTIOMMMU-TFOMT-TAH ~ But I Had Not Reckoned – It Was Evident – With The Idiosyncrasies Of My Mental Make-Up – The Facts Of My Temperament – Training And Habits

~ TM-MBM-ONE ~ The Miracle – Moment By Moment – Of Naked Existence

~ TBV-SCA-BAB ~ The Beatific Vision – Sat Chit Ananda – Being-Awareness-Bliss

~ SWST-B-IHLIP ~ Space Was Still There – But – It Had Lost Its Predominance

~ TMWPC-NWMAL-BWBAM ~ The Mind Was Primarily Concerned – Not With Measures And Location – But With Being And Meaning

~ AEMCITT-TSTBPOI ~ An Even More Complete Indifference To Time – There Seems To Be Plenty Of It

~ AWWESWTILAWIIIS ~ A World Where Everything Shone With The Inner Light And Was Infinite In Its Significance

~ MAL ~ Mind At Large

~ HE-SCNBTTTSF ~ However Expressive – Symbols Can Never Be The Things They Stand For

~ TGKOS ~ The Great Knowers Of Suchness

~ TPA ~ The Plastic Arts

~ TFOMGFTWCW-‘I’ ~ The Folds Of My Gray Flannel Trousers Were Charged With – “Is-ness”

~ C-ANLTB-G-O-P-O-D-TDNAARPIOMW-DNFINT-R-S-O-GTFOTP ~ Contemplatives – Are Not Likely To Become – Gamblers – Or – Procurers – Or – Drunkards – They Do Not As A Rule Preach Intolerance Or Make War – Do Not Find It Necessary To – Rob – Swindle – Or – Grind The Faces Of The Poor

~ AOEUTD-TIR-OWNBATS-TNWOTO ~ And Once Embarked Upon The Downward – The Infernal Road – One Would Never Be Able To Stop – That Now Was Only Too Obvious

~ TRDAWGAWAFOAS ~ The Revelation Dawned And Was Gone Again Within A Fraction Of A Second

~ THALWEBATDWAPSVU ~ That Humanity At Large Will Ever Be Able To Dispense With Artificial Paradises Seems Very Unlikely

~ WKSAGDMODASTWPOE ~ We Now Spend A Good Deal More On Drink And Smoke Than We Spend On Education

WILLIAM BONNER + ADDISON WIGGIN ~ THE NEW EMPIRE OF DEBT ~ 2006 + 2009

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~ NFISLATIOGSFN ~ No Fraud Is So Lovable As The Illusion Of Getting Something For Nothing

~ SSPNRITSS-GNALUTLPLTOLITOW ~ Supply-Side Policies Never Really Increased The Supply Side – Government Never Actually Lightened Up To Let People Live Their Own Lives In Their Own Ways

~ AAEM-TICBMAMET ~ As An Empire Matures – The Imperial Citizens Believe More And More Extravagant Things

~ TLOTDATDOTUWBI-I-ATSTMWCITHAN ~ The Lessons Of The Dead And The Desires Of The Unborn Were Both Ignored – Instead – All That Seemed To Matter Was Consumption In The Here And Now

~ TTWTTFJBCSTM;TTT-A-TOTTMHBUTITFHBAIFONMCD ~ The Trouble Was That The Facts Had Been Corrupted So They No Longer Told The Truth – And – The Old Theories That Might Have Been Used To Interpret The Facts Had Been Abandoned In Favor Of New More Convenient Delusions

~ ACNRUAMDATW-STNT ~ Americans Could Now Run Up As Much Debt As They Wanted – Said The New Theorists

~ AOSIPOWAATDTATOE-IWH-TS-IWG-IWS ~ Abuse Of Statistics Is Part Of What Allowed Americans To Deceive Themselves About Their Own Economy – It Was Healthy – They Said – It Was Growing – It Was Stable

~ IWOTAWBTTAI-TAETSMTIEIID-BTTFAEWTSS ~ It Was Obvious To Anyone Who Bothered To Think About It – That An Economy That Spends More Than It Earns Is In Decline – But Try To Find An Economist Willing To Say So

~ AF-HCFG-IILBTFTKW ~ At First – Higher Consumption Feels Good – It Is Like Burning The Furniture To Keep Warm

~ RTALABTDFTWRTWA-TCPATUSFRDFT-HTCKEWLRSALAICENHNBE ~ Rather Than Allow Lenders And Borrowers To Decide For Themselves What Rates They Would Accept – The Central Planners At The U.S. Federal Reserve Decided For Them – How They Can Know Exactly What Lending Rate Such A Large And Infinitely Complex Economy Needs Has Never Been Explained

~ MIF ~ Modern Imperial Finance

~ GAID ~ Globalization And Its Discontents

~ TEOHHBAST-B-TNSTA ~ The End Of History Has Been Announced Several Times – But – It Never Seems To Arrive

~ WARNWNASB-BACSB-PWS-BOC-NFP ~ What America Really Needed Was Not A Consumer Binge – But A Capital Spending Boom – People Were Spending – But On Consumption – Not Future Production

~ CDRTIHLIH-TEWTIBAOTW-A-TTTUSFTWLCTIBD ~ Consumer Debt Rose To Its Highest Level In History – The Effect Was To Inspire Bubbles All Over The World – And – To Transform The United States From The World’s Largest Creditor To Its Biggest Debtor

~ UTDC-YNKQWYA-B-FEITCA-TADOEIRTPI-A-ALHTPIRTBI ~ Until The Disaster Comes – You Never Know Quite Where You Are – Because – For Every Imbecility That Comes Along – There Are Dozens Of Eager Intellectuals Ready To Promote It – And – At Least Half The Population Is Ready To Believe It

~ MEBWNLNF-TTTIRHMMGTTGU ~ Many Economists Believed We No Longer Needed Factories – They Thought The Information Revolution Had Many More Good Things To Give Us

~ NBHPBETBSMIT-B-P-NBHSMITST ~ Never Before Had People Been Expected To Believed So Many Impossible Things – But – Perhaps – Never Before Had So Many Impossible Things Seemed True

~ FDB ~ Fin De Bubble

~ TBHT;IDBTTTTTBWI ~ They Believed Happy Things; It Didn’t Bother Them That The Things They Believed Were Impossible

~ AIHLALOMIOB-TPCWUTNOCA ~ After Investors Have Lost A Lot Of Money In One Bubble – They Practically Can’t Wait Until The Next One Comes Along

~ TCC ~ The Coming Correction

~ NBTDNE ~ Nothing Begins That Does Not End

~ PL-M-F-A-CT-EWIFT ~ People Love – Myth – Fraud – And – Claptrap – Especially When It Flatters Them

~ WYMLTPWCPTMB-TIOACOSDA ~ When You Make Loans To People Who Can’t Pay The Money Back – Trouble Is Only A Couple Of Standard Deviations Away

~ NPL ~ Nobel Prize Losers

~ TFIWWC-B-IWJDWIAD-SFFTM ~ The Financial Industry Was Widely Criticized – But – It Was Just Doing What It Always Does – Separating Fools From Their Money

~ NIETSTAS ~ Nobody Is Easier To Scam Then A Scammer

~ IWASKOLF-CWTCD ~ It Was A Strange Kind Of Laissez-Faire – Capitalism Without The Creative Destruction

~ IABS-TSWEOATAWNANMTPZ-ISOALATAENCTCTPMTTOO-AIAPS-TFOITSDVW ~ In A Broad Sense – The Social Welfare Economies Of All The Advanced Western Nations Are Nothing More Than Ponzi Schemes – It Survives Only As Long As There Are Enough New Contributors To Cover The Promises Made To The Old Ones – As In Any Ponzi Scheme – The First Ones Into The System Do Very Well

~ TWSIBD-MLICBR-TEODIC ~ The Whole System Is Breaking Down – Mostly Likely – It Cannot Be Repaired – The Empire Of Debt Is Collapsing

~ CB-AEK-A-R&S ~ Central Bankers – As Everyone Knows – Are – Rascals And Scalawags

~ IIETBSTTBG-TWTASMSP-ASFGO ~ It Is Easier To Be Smart Than To Be Good – That’s Why There Are So Many Smart People – And So Few Good Ones

~ TNGSTHNRWF-TVOTG-O-TFOTG-TDTWOTD-ALUTUWD ~ The Newest Generation Seems To Have No Regard Whatever For – The Virtues Of Their Grandparents – Or – The Futures Of Their Grandchildren – They Disregard The Wisdom Of The Dead – And Load Up The Unborn With Debt

~ B-C-W-TIPCM ~ Bread – Circuses – War – The Imperial Program Costs Money

~ TLTRS-TMPBCTTWNC-ALATCBDB-WNHMSOI? ~ The Longer Things Remain Stable – The More People Become Convinced That They Will Never Change – As Long As The Camel’s Back Doesn’t Break – Why Not Heap More Straw On It?