Maxed Out

This is one powerful film. If you have not seen it you should, fast (while you cut up your credit cards). It is about the takeover of our government by corporations in part, but also how entrenched every politician is & cozy in bed with these companies and that the 2005 Bankruptcy Law (which the new Vice Presidential nominee Senator Biden voted for) was a sham and a giveaway to credit card companies (the law was written by MBNA).

It shows how the system is stacked against the common person and how we simply all are a tragedy away from losing everything. It shows that when these tragedies do strike the credit card companies and collection agencies could care less about you, so they sell your debt to anyone with a penny. I was one of those people when I lost almost everything due to a terrible car accident (I got lucky and sued the fuckers). For years afterward I had scum bags calling me because they said I still owed them money (although I didn't).

Electing a democratic president will not change this fact, get rid of your debt or stop these companies from funding our government. Here is the trailer. You can also read the book "Maxed Out."



Roll Call vote for the Bankruptcy Bill, Senator Clinton did not vote though she supported an earlier version and Senator Obama did vote against it as most democrats did, but not Senator Biden.

Gotta Pay to Play

As someone who has $50k in school debt and a passion for justice, I frequently wish that progressive activist jobs paid considerably more. In fact, because of the lack of scratch attached to these jobs, I went back to get my Masters. At the time, I lived in Austin, Texas, where everyone in progressive politics is over-educated and over-qualified. So you know what that means. Exploitation of the young and politically aware. The land where internships are unpaid and entry-level positions barely hit the $25,000 mark. Ah…doesn’t it feel good to give back to your country?

So you can imagine how I related to the article, After College Ends, So Does Activism. It talks of the canvassing that young progressives are forced to do to break onto the political scene, the lack of health insurance, the shitty hours and the even shittier pay.

What does it mean for our country’s future when we don’t mentor the younger generation and give them an opportunity to learn about politics? The author notes, and I wholeheartedly concur, “The importance of engaging and gainfully employing young progressives is hard to overstate, both for its immediate practicality and the long-term sustainability of the left. By ignoring progressive grads' economic constraints, the progressive movement -- activists and funders -- are squandering an immense opportunity to utilize the ideology, size and energy of the post-graduate generation.”

So, those of you with decision-making abilities start paying better and provide a little health insurance. It’s the least we can do for our future.