Index

D. C. Depression

We as a society have been pouring more and more money into the stock market as “investments.”  The Reagan-era stupidity that produced the first phase of privatized Social Security program - the 401(k) - is about to come home to roost as the first and largest - and probably last - wave of people who will actually try to retire on their 401(k) savings starts their withdrawals.  Since the only retirement program available to most people anymore is the 401(k) - corporate America has long since abandoned any pretense of caring about their employees - when the reality of betting your retirement on a suit-and-tie version of Las Vegas comes home to roost, the real “socialized” retirement program will have to pick up the slack, and the Social Security surplus - the federal deficit fig leaf - will disappear faster than a politician’s election promises.

Oops - it already has.  They cut the Social Security paycheck deduction in half this year - more short-sighted stupidity, and I am sure there is more to come.  By the time I get to retirement age, not only will my 401(k) be worthless, but Social Security will be so busted that I will be competing with ten 80-year olds for a coveted Wal-Mart greeter job.

I suppose I had some hopes for Obama - he talked a good fight, and apparently had an intellect to back it up, unlike his predecessors.  The reality is that there has been absolutely no change in direction, though - the D. C. slide into oligarchy continues unabated.  The bastard child of rich men’s and politicians’ combined greed - the one that now governs Moscow - continues to take over in Washington.  The politically and financially motivated corporate layoffs that finished the destruction of the American middle class created (malice aforethough) enough of a crisis that any real change will have to wait - probably for hell to freeze over at the current rate.

I take that back - we don’t have to wait.  The stupidity of the Tea party has accelerated the slide, as planned.  The bought-and-paid-for rich man’s rhetoric - the only true believers are on Fox News, and they get paid really well  - has created so much commotion in Washington that the government will shut down this year.  I don’t believe in miracles, and the expertly-orchestrated chaos that is the House guarantees that the budget process will go into deep freeze.

When the government shuts down, there won’t be anybody to enforce anything.  What few federal taxes there are won’t get collected, and federal law enforcement will grind to a halt.  The EPA will not have anybody to enforce its regulations, and the SEC will close for lack of funding.  What is left of the Washington tax funding will be pissed down the rat-hole of Afghanistan and Iraq.  The oil companies will be free to flood the Gulf and Alaska with oil and toxic crap from their refineries, just like they have in the Niger delta and other places.  The coal companies won’t be held to account for the “accidental” deaths and pollution, especially in places like Kentucky where they already own the state government.  The coal-bearing portion of the Appalachians will become an acid swamp/red dog desert as mountain-top removal moves into high gear.  And this is only the stuff that is queued up for 2011.

I am still hunting for that job in New Zealand.  Or Germany.  Or maybe even in Egypt at this point - they at least have hope.

In the meantime, my nightmares have moved into reality with a vengeance.  Time to double my citalopram dose - anybody got anything more effective?  What did I do with that can of Carbon Monoxide?