Candid Tam » Politico Opinion

Unanswered Questions For Occupy

admin — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 12:31:02 +0000

I can’t seem to get a straight answer for any of these questions related to Occupy:

How can I trust a group who chooses GA over a democratic voting process?

How can I trust a group who says they’re for everyone but judges, character assassinates, and demonizes viable critquers?

How can I trust a group to national change and opinion when they can’t even respect the immediate community?

How can I trust a group who says they’re for everyone but slanders rape victims who say they were raped in Occupy camps?

How can I trust a group who says they’re for everyone but plants their camps on middle class and lower middle class neighborhoods holding illegal Lollapalooza style concerts? How is that supposed to “stick it to the man?” You’re sticking it to the working class, actually.

How can I trust a group who says they’re for everyone but encourages and supports drug use and harbors drug dealers and addicts? My neighborhood’s drug crime rate has dramatically gone up in the last month Occupy moved in across the street.

What are you really doing to change the system? How is free rent at the tax-payer’s expense going to change corporate greed? At this point how are you not doing exactly what the corporations are doing?

How can I trust a group who says they’re for everyone but abuses the law and twists the meaning of the bill of rights to only benefit one group over another?

How can I trust a group who says they’re for everyone but easily and ungratefully forgets how the cities have bent over backwards for you?
Our little community was fine with receiving you but you’re abusing the generosity.

How can I trust a group who says they’re for everyone but threatens violent reaction if the cities try to regain the public land you’re taxing and the neighborhoods you’re abusing?

How are you actually for the people? Honestly.

Union Busting: A Very Good Question

admin — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 02:31:12 +0000

Reposting from a commentator on the Yahoo news forum in relation to today’s black shroud that’s descended on Wisconsin … soon to taint the country:

Union Busting
by: The Patriot

It seems that bashing unions at the expense of union workers has become popular and the sport of politicians everywhere, all under the guise of ’saving taxpayer dollars.’ Yet if it’s truly about saving tax dollars and not merely strong arming union members and taking away their right to collective bargaining, then why hasn’t one politician at the federal, state, county or city level brought up the subject of reducing the salaries, benefits and pensions of all the politicians and appointed high level govt. positions? Some of these same Government leaders greatly contributed to the fiscal collapse we’re all facing, yet lazy and irresponsible voters have rewarded them by keeping them in office.

So what does a Governor, Congressman, Senator or State Senator, HUD Secretary, State Attorney General, District Atty, Tax Collector, Comptroller, Treasury Secretary, Judge, Obama Czar, Education Secretary, City Councilman, Sheriff or Property Appraiser earn, and how much of their pre-agreed upon wages and benefits are we going to be taking from each of them? What about the support staffs of the upper level politicians or how about the Dog Catcher, School Superintendant or Principals and others on taxpayer payrolls – how much do they make? And please tell me what justifies giving a Senator a pension for life after 4 years in office? Pensions which often include free medical care for life! And why are these pensions then passed onto their spouses upon the politicians deaths?

Also, no one has mentioned anything about going after the ‘non-union’ govt. salaries, benefits and pensions – which are very often based on what the union members have negotiated – and sometimes it’s even more – especially when they get to vote for their own raises. Attacking union bosses I suppose I can understand, because some of them act like gangsters on par with the crooked and inept politicians they’ve used union member dues to purchase. But attacking unions as it is being done is mostly hurting the union members and their families who are just trying to get by like everybody else. So if it’s really about saving taxpayer dollars and not merely a veiled attempt at busting unions for big businesses, then let’s go after all of these other groups mentioned here so we can really save taxpayer dollars – and since they’re so vocal on the idea of saving taxpayer money, let’s begin with the wealthy politicians bent on harming union families by cutting away at their negotiated paychecks, pensions and benefits.

The “Koch Whore” Deals You Some WTF’ery – Walker Style

admin — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 06:23:07 +0000

So if you missed the prank call of Wisconsin Gov. Walker’s office like I did till just now, then you’re in for an interesting listen. I also suspect Walker had a clue he wasn’t really talking to Koch somewhere towards the beginning because he was sticking more to talking points than an actual flowing conversation. Or maybe partisans really are thoughtlessly talking automatons.

Anyway, talking points aside I’ve learned more about mental retardation in the last 20 minutes then I ever cared to know in a life time. I mean, don’t get me wrong – I love to hate on Democrats as much as the next guy but professional Republicans really are a special breed.

There are soooo many things about this conversation that make me cringe. Mainly the fact that apparently these people are really THAT out of touch. I just figured they were all really good overpaid actors trucked in from Sherman Oaks, Beverly Hills and Bel Air. So other than what I mentioned above, I learned:

1. Walker and “his people” actually perceive people who make money to have more open minds than oh say… the ones who don’t make money? I didn’t know being rich made you more open to the world!!! When did that memo come out?!

2. Walker believes people who have the time to get out and protest are the very “unionized” kind of pricks who should get pink slips for skipping work to protest. Apparently all protesters are work ditching badies because clearly if you’re out protesting, then you’re not working. I’m wondering what his stance is on draft dodging ? I digress – no one should be allowed to not be working if all they’re going to do is spend their free time protesting! Protest? Utter non-sense. Fire those wage slave shills!

3. EVERYONE IS EQUAL!!!! You know? It’s logical to feel excusably justified in making everyone suffer equally. Just not the other way around, of course. If “Sally bus driver” is having hard times because of the original Republican/Libertarian fair economy crushing policies – then no one else should be doing well. OBVIOUSLY! So fuck you people who aren’t as affected by the last 10-years of the Fed in bed with Goldman Sachs/Enron! Right? I mean are you with me on this people!? Who do these average working assholes think they are?! Doing moderately better than the rest of us poor saps…. grumble, grumble, grumble … and so on.

4. Apparently Republicans refer to each other as “One of us.” Almost like it’s some really serious club for hair loss or impotency.

5. Air traffic control were bothersome symbols of communism. Air traffic safety and clean water. I mean really WTF is that other than a huge waste of money (over human life.)

6. Politicians really do hire fake protesters and agitators! I suspected that but it is now confirmed.

7. They really are in bed with big money jizz-buckets like Koch. Next time I’m calling Obama claiming to be Oprah. We’ll see how far I get.

and

8. They’re more right/correct than anyone else. Because they say so. I guess I knew that one.

Anyway – Give the calls a listen yourself. It’s beautiful, beautiful….

Libertarians are the “New” Scientologists

admin — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 08:56:31 +0000

CT: ugh
CT: all gov candidates here suck
CT: not any better than illinois i am sure
CT: fucking three batshit crazy libertarians
CT: one GOP zobie whore
CT: and one “Democrat”
CT: zombie*

F: go with the nutjobs

CT: they’re ALL nuts

F: no i mean the really crazy teabagger types

CT: haha ill go with the no women’s rights – no gay’s rights – no poverty rights – no health care – no budget for public education
CT: no nothing

F: i think of it like electing a crackhead
F: it should be amusing

CT: somewhere down the line someone forgot to explain to these assholes what Democracy is …
CT: fair rights for all
CT: nope
CT: they don’t get it AT ALL

F: i think if they get elected they will do something completely ridiculous
F: or say a bunch of stupid shit
F: thus discrediting themselves, their party, their party’s platform etc etc
F: it will also make life hell for the regular bureaucrats
F: right now they have it easy
F: they can just be anti-everything
F: and rabblerouse
F: but if they get elected and actually have to do anything
F: comedy gold!

CT: >_<

F: theyre more powerful on the outside i think
F: they can protest and hoot and holler

CT: they’re bat-shit crazy – like Kim Jong Iil – is what they are

CT: i love how this makes sense
CT: somehow in their brain
CT: Eliminate
b) Education (K-12)
CT: lol
CT: fer real!
CT: this shit is like
CT: blows my damn mind
F: they dont need no fancy book-learnin

CT: Eliminate
h) Welfare
CT: yep
CT: it’s easy to forget what subgroup of humans you’ve spent 400 years ass raping and forcing poverty down their throats
CT: only like what… 30 or so years after the fact
CT: no sense of social responsibility at all
CT: let me drive the proverbial car of society into a wall drunk and kill a shit ton of people in the process get out and walk home without thinking about it ever again
CT: libertarians are retarded

F: they like guns

CT: well fuck!

F: gotta give em that

CT: I like guns!

F: theyre alright with dope too

CT: haha they’re all right with everything the government hates
basically
CT: if you made breathing air something the government was pro choice on
CT: they’d be all like … “oh fuck no we don’t need to breath air! just because big fucking brother tells us too means it’s the worst thing possible for us!”
CT: the libertarian parties slogan should be: “We are the group of adults who never outgrew our teenage angst. Let’s smoke dope together and hate everything that stands for authority and law in the world maaaan.”
CT: and then Christine ODonnell would come out dressed in leaves and dirt playing a pagan tune on her recorder flute…
CT: and would caste spells of power on all of us
…

CT: you know the more i think about it – the Libertarians are starting to sound a lot like the Scientologists

Google Blames You – For Their Implanted Microchip

admin — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 23:56:58 +0000

And Google openly gets even creepier indeed.

Tah daaah!

Glad I don’t use their crap and glad I wont have to change my name but I do agree that some of you indeed might have to. Have fun with that.

P.S. To all you “End Times” / “Mark of the Beast” conspiracy theorists. Have fun with this story, ok? Could this be the predicted chip implant you all have been talking about for the last 30-years? 0OooooOooooo! 2012 is drawing neigh.

As for ME: This story got me thinking generally about how responsible we actually were, my generation (the millennials), the first youths (now 27 ish – 37 ish) to use “teh” internets socially: With our self-hosted photo albums, chat rooms, made up handles, and self-hosted cam pages. Our only foe is the “Way Back Machine” and that is no where as intrusive as are the rest of these asshole companies today. I think we were more responsible by comparison to how doltishly irresponsible the newbs are currently – (the younger kids, the well older people, and the small town folk who are just now getting internet) who literally put anything and everything up along with their real name on deceitful robber-baron servers, without thought. And ironically this seems to be the same majority who are more concerned with being “hacked” and who probably solely support the anti-virus software industry too.

This ironic demographic, in my opinion, are totally like the “obesity epidemic” demographic: People who don’t want to stop ravenously consuming food as the obvious solution to their problem are like people who see no harm in ravenously consuming their, and their neighbor’s, own personal privacy to death. In every case these foolish people would rather dumbly consume something else, be it a diet pill, diet food, or their own natural born identities and names in order to “fix” their stupid problem with over-consumption.

Consuming to fix your over-consumption disease. How beautifully pathetic.

That leaves this commentary with one last argument for the marketing sociopaths and those reiterating parrot people devoid of brain activity …

To the anti-privacyists, sly corporate fundamentalists, and the clueless newbs: If you’re so willing to share your whole life on Google and FB that it could come to implanted microchips for everyone, then why even bother with passwords and anti-virus ware on your accounts and systems today?

Let it all go and be completely free! You know like the “free,” STD spreading love of the 60’s!

Post your accounts and logins RIGHT below for the rest of us to read. It’s your revolution. Viva la’ unsustainable consumption baby!

Opportune Take What’s Not Yours Day!

admin — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 08:06:55 +0000

The First Americans

The Grand Council Fire of American Indians

December 1, 1927

To the mayor of Chicago:
You tell all white men “America First.” We believe in that. We are the only ones, truly, that are one hundred percent. We therefore ask you, while you are teaching schoolchildren about America First, teach them truth about the First Americans.

We do not know if school histories are pro-British, but we do know that they are unjust to the life of our people—the American Indian. They call all white victories battles and all Indian victories massacres. The battle with Custer has been taught to schoolchildren as a fearful massacre on our part. We ask that this, as well as other incidents, be told fairly. If the Custer battle was a massacre, what was Wounded Knee?

History books teach that Indians were murderers—is it murder to fight in self-defense? Indians killed white men because white men took their lands, ruined their hunting grounds, burned their forests, destroyed their buffalo. White men penned our people on reservations, then took away the reservations. White men who rise to protect their property are called patriots—Indians who do the same are called murderers.

White men call Indians treacherous—but no mention is made of broken treaties on the part of the white man. White men say that Indians were always fighting. It was only our lack of skill in white man’s warfare that led to our defeat. An Indian mother prayed that her boy be a great medicine man rather than a great warrior. It is true that we had our own small battles, but in the main we were peace loving and home loving.

White men called Indians thieves—and yet we lived in frail skin lodges and needed no locks or iron bars. White men call Indians savages. What is civilization? Its marks are a noble religion and philosophy, original arts, stirring music, rich story and legend. We had these. Then we were not savages, but a civilized race.

We made blankets that were beautiful, that the white man with all his machinery has never been able to duplicate. We made baskets that were beautiful. We wove in beads and colored quills designs that were not just decorative motifs but were the outward expression of our very thoughts. We made pottery—pottery that was useful, and beautiful as well. Why not make schoolchildren acquainted with the beautiful handicrafts in which we were skilled? Put in every school Indian blankets, baskets, pottery.

We sang songs that carried in their melodies all the sounds of nature—the running of waters, the sighing of winds, and the calls of the animals. Teach these to your children that they may come to love nature as we love it.

We had our statesmen—and their oratory has never been equaled. Teach the children some of these speeches of our people, remarkable for their brilliant oratory.

We played games—games that brought good health and sound bodies. Why not put these in your schools? We told stories. Why not teach schoolchildren more of the wholesome proverbs and legends of our people? Tell them how we loved all that was beautiful. That we killed game only for food, not for fun. Indians think white men who kill for fun are murderers.

Tell your children of the friendly acts of Indians to the white people who first settled here. Tell them of our leaders and heroes and their deeds. Tell them of Indians such as Black Partridge, Shabbona, and others who many times saved the people of Chicago at great danger to themselves. Put in your history books the Indian’s part in the World War. Tell how the Indian fought for a country of which he was not a citizen, for a flag to which he had no claim, and for a people that have treated him unjustly.

The Indian has long been hurt by these unfair books. We ask only that our story be told in fairness. We do not ask you to overlook what we did, but we do ask you to understand it. A true program of America First will give a generous place to the culture and history of the American Indian.

We ask this, Chief, to keep sacred the memory of our people.

Economic Darwinism? Really?

admin — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 23:23:02 +0000

I wonder what Darwin and Thornstein Veblen would have to say on this topic of “Economic Darwinism.”

I had someone say they favor Wal-Mart because it represents “Economic Darwinism” which got me thinking about wtf this even means. Here’s my take…

If the definition of “Economic Darwinism” is survival of the fittest business then by that definition where does Wal-Mart fit in to the definition of survival when compared to all sectors?

To survive is to live or exist in spite of danger or hardship. What sort of danger or hardship does Wal-Mart suffer from? What exactly constitutes for hardship and danger for the elite world population/resources exploiting billionaires?

Wal-Mart doesn’t operate to “survive.” They operate to saturate and to intentionally monopolize. Who then operates to survive? I guess that would be the small business. Mom and pop businesses are in business designed to promote survival, to feed a family, to pay a mortgage, to send some kids to school.

On another note Darwinism is the study of biological beings and a change in their genetics. It’s something you have no control over and you have no choice but to cope with it.

“Economic Darwinism” sounds like some fundamentalist’s fabulously concocted excuse to be greedy without having any remorse. Business is not a biological thing and therefore it can be controlled. Darwinism describes a biological change “Economic Darwinism” describes what? A feeling of entitlement? They’re not even the same damn thing!

Saying Wal-Mart V. small business is an acceptable example of “Economic Darwinism” is like saying, “It’s perfectly acceptable to wipe out a whole community because I like money.”

What a despicable thing to be arguing for.

Jonny’s Neighbor is a Schmuck

admin — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 23:24:57 +0000

I present to you, my sad attempt at drawing and stuff.
Jonny’s Neighbor – A first (and possibly last) cartoon by Candid Tam.