The Government Accountability Office (GAO) says that our Government has handed out $16 trillion to the banks. Let me repeat that, in case you didn’t hear me the first time. The GAO says that our Government HAS HANDED OUT $16 TRILLION TO THE BANKS. That little gem appears on Page 131 of GAO Report No. GAO-11-696. A report issued two months ago. A report that somehow seems to have eluded the attention of virtually every network, every major newspaper, and every news show. How much is $16 trillion? That is an amount equal to or more than $50,000 for every man, woman and child in America. That’s more than every penny that every American earns in a year. That’s an amount equal to almost a third of our national net worth -- the value of every home, car, personal belonging, business, bank account, stock, bond, piece of land, book, tree, chandelier, and everything else anyone owns in America. That’s an amount greater than our entire national debt, accumulated over the course of two centuries. A $16 trillion stack of dollar bills would reach all the way to the Moon. And back. Twice. That’s enough to pay for Saturday mail delivery. For the next 5,000 years. All of that money went from you and me to the banks. And we got nothing. Not even a toaster. I have been patiently waiting to see whether this disclosure would provoke some kind of reaction. Answer: nope. Everyone seems much more interested in discussing whether or not they like the cut of Perry’s jib. Whatever a jib may be. In the next few weeks, I’m going to be writing more about this. But right now, I wanted to keep this really simple. Just give folks something to talk about when they’re standing next to the coffee maker. The Government gave $16 trillion to the banks. And nobody else is talking about it. Think about it. Think about what that means. Courage, Alan GraysonTo put it another way, $16 trillion will buy enough gas to drive to Alpha Centauri and back. Twice.
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thesilentpoet is having a postcard sale. Each card comes with a bit of flash fiction, character info, or other interesting stuff on it. thesilentpoet is having a postcard sale. Each card comes with a bit of flash fiction, character info, or other interesting stuff on it. thesilentpoet is having a postcard sale. Each card comes with a bit of flash fiction, character info, or other interesting stuff on it. thesilentpoet is having a postcard sale. Each card comes with a bit of flash fiction, character info, or other interesting stuff on it. ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
aldersprig started this story based on a prompt that I gave, which has since been sponsored and voted for extensions. It's sweet and a little edgy, a fantasy story about a cat-girl. aldersprig plans to do a Giraffe Call for prompted fiction this Saturday. Input is sought on what kind of perks you'd like for commenting/donating. Here are some big economic lies that are wrecking the country. (Link courtesy of my_partner_doug). They aren't myths or mistakes. They're falsehoods that some people are deliberately promoting. For instance, lowering taxes doesn't grow the economy; it shrinks the economy. That's because it promotes the concentration of wealth to the point that most people can't buy what they need. This feeds into another problem: businesses are stalling due to lack of demand, not due to regulations. People who don't have jobs, or who can't earn enough to live on, are unable to buy the goods and services that businesses are pushing. This is the kind of mess you get when people in charge are allowed to rule based on faith, authority, emotion, or any other non-factual basis. The facts bite you on the ass.
Here are some big economic lies that are wrecking the country. (Link courtesy of my_partner_doug). They aren't myths or mistakes. They're falsehoods that some people are deliberately promoting. For instance, lowering taxes doesn't grow the economy; it shrinks the economy. That's because it promotes the concentration of wealth to the point that most people can't buy what they need. This feeds into another problem: businesses are stalling due to lack of demand, not due to regulations. People who don't have jobs, or who can't earn enough to live on, are unable to buy the goods and services that businesses are pushing. This is the kind of mess you get when people in charge are allowed to rule based on faith, authority, emotion, or any other non-factual basis. The facts bite you on the ass.
Here are some big economic lies that are wrecking the country. (Link courtesy of my_partner_doug). They aren't myths or mistakes. They're falsehoods that some people are deliberately promoting. For instance, lowering taxes doesn't grow the economy; it shrinks the economy. That's because it promotes the concentration of wealth to the point that most people can't buy what they need. This feeds into another problem: businesses are stalling due to lack of demand, not due to regulations. People who don't have jobs, or who can't earn enough to live on, are unable to buy the goods and services that businesses are pushing. This is the kind of mess you get when people in charge are allowed to rule based on faith, authority, emotion, or any other non-factual basis. The facts bite you on the ass.
Here are some big economic lies that are wrecking the country. (Link courtesy of my_partner_doug). They aren't myths or mistakes. They're falsehoods that some people are deliberately promoting. For instance, lowering taxes doesn't grow the economy; it shrinks the economy. That's because it promotes the concentration of wealth to the point that most people can't buy what they need. This feeds into another problem: businesses are stalling due to lack of demand, not due to regulations. People who don't have jobs, or who can't earn enough to live on, are unable to buy the goods and services that businesses are pushing. This is the kind of mess you get when people in charge are allowed to rule based on faith, authority, emotion, or any other non-factual basis. The facts bite you on the ass.
If you're interested, mark the date on your calendar, and please hold actual prompts until the "Poetry Fishbowl Open" post next week. This fishbowl is open to everyone, but I'm not actively promoting it away from my blog, because I think it will make more sense to people who are already familiar with Monster House and the fishbowl project in general.
Writing is usually considered a solitary pursuit. One exception to this is a fascinating exercise called a "fishbowl." This has various forms, but all of them basically involve some kind of writing in public, usually with interaction between author and audience. A famous example is Harlan Ellison's series of "stories under glass" in which he sits in a bookstore window and writes a new story based on an idea that someone gives him. Writing classes sometimes include a version where students watch each other write, often with students calling out suggestions which are chalked up on the blackboard for those writing to use as inspiration.
I'm going to host a Poetry Fishbowl on my blog on Tuesday, October 18. I'll be soliciting ideas for thematic characters, objects, plots, settings, and poetic forms in particular. Chances are I'll spend about half the day, from early afternoon to evening, alternating between this site and doing stuff offline so my back doesn't weld itself to the chair.
Perks: I will post at least one of the resulting fishbowl poems on the blog for everyone to enjoy, and an extra one if there's at least one new prompter or donor. The rest will be available for audience members to buy, and whatever's left over will go into my archive for magazine submission. I'm not running the whole perk stack since this fishbowl is itself a perk, but you still get those two.
If you enjoy my poetry -- or if you just love poetry in general, or want to promote interest in Monster House -- please mark the fishbowl date on your calendar. Drop by and give me some ideas, comment on the posted poetry, encourage people to come look, whatever tickles your fancy. I hope to see you then!
If you're interested, mark the date on your calendar, and please hold actual prompts until the "Poetry Fishbowl Open" post next week. This fishbowl is open to everyone, but I'm not actively promoting it away from my blog, because I think it will make more sense to people who are already familiar with Monster House and the fishbowl project in general.
Writing is usually considered a solitary pursuit. One exception to this is a fascinating exercise called a "fishbowl." This has various forms, but all of them basically involve some kind of writing in public, usually with interaction between author and audience. A famous example is Harlan Ellison's series of "stories under glass" in which he sits in a bookstore window and writes a new story based on an idea that someone gives him. Writing classes sometimes include a version where students watch each other write, often with students calling out suggestions which are chalked up on the blackboard for those writing to use as inspiration.
I'm going to host a Poetry Fishbowl on my blog on Tuesday, October 18. I'll be soliciting ideas for thematic characters, objects, plots, settings, and poetic forms in particular. Chances are I'll spend about half the day, from early afternoon to evening, alternating between this site and doing stuff offline so my back doesn't weld itself to the chair.
Perks: I will post at least one of the resulting fishbowl poems on the blog for everyone to enjoy, and an extra one if there's at least one new prompter or donor. The rest will be available for audience members to buy, and whatever's left over will go into my archive for magazine submission. I'm not running the whole perk stack since this fishbowl is itself a perk, but you still get those two.
If you enjoy my poetry -- or if you just love poetry in general, or want to promote interest in Monster House -- please mark the fishbowl date on your calendar. Drop by and give me some ideas, comment on the posted poetry, encourage people to come look, whatever tickles your fancy. I hope to see you then!
If you're interested, mark the date on your calendar, and please hold actual prompts until the "Poetry Fishbowl Open" post next week. This fishbowl is open to everyone, but I'm not actively promoting it away from my blog, because I think it will make more sense to people who are already familiar with Monster House and the fishbowl project in general.
Writing is usually considered a solitary pursuit. One exception to this is a fascinating exercise called a "fishbowl." This has various forms, but all of them basically involve some kind of writing in public, usually with interaction between author and audience. A famous example is Harlan Ellison's series of "stories under glass" in which he sits in a bookstore window and writes a new story based on an idea that someone gives him. Writing classes sometimes include a version where students watch each other write, often with students calling out suggestions which are chalked up on the blackboard for those writing to use as inspiration.
I'm going to host a Poetry Fishbowl on my blog on Tuesday, October 18. I'll be soliciting ideas for thematic characters, objects, plots, settings, and poetic forms in particular. Chances are I'll spend about half the day, from early afternoon to evening, alternating between this site and doing stuff offline so my back doesn't weld itself to the chair.
Perks: I will post at least one of the resulting fishbowl poems on the blog for everyone to enjoy, and an extra one if there's at least one new prompter or donor. The rest will be available for audience members to buy, and whatever's left over will go into my archive for magazine submission. I'm not running the whole perk stack since this fishbowl is itself a perk, but you still get those two.
If you enjoy my poetry -- or if you just love poetry in general, or want to promote interest in Monster House -- please mark the fishbowl date on your calendar. Drop by and give me some ideas, comment on the posted poetry, encourage people to come look, whatever tickles your fancy. I hope to see you then!
If you're interested, mark the date on your calendar, and please hold actual prompts until the "Poetry Fishbowl Open" post next week. This fishbowl is open to everyone, but I'm not actively promoting it away from my blog, because I think it will make more sense to people who are already familiar with Monster House and the fishbowl project in general.
Writing is usually considered a solitary pursuit. One exception to this is a fascinating exercise called a "fishbowl." This has various forms, but all of them basically involve some kind of writing in public, usually with interaction between author and audience. A famous example is Harlan Ellison's series of "stories under glass" in which he sits in a bookstore window and writes a new story based on an idea that someone gives him. Writing classes sometimes include a version where students watch each other write, often with students calling out suggestions which are chalked up on the blackboard for those writing to use as inspiration.
I'm going to host a Poetry Fishbowl on my blog on Tuesday, October 18. I'll be soliciting ideas for thematic characters, objects, plots, settings, and poetic forms in particular. Chances are I'll spend about half the day, from early afternoon to evening, alternating between this site and doing stuff offline so my back doesn't weld itself to the chair.
Perks: I will post at least one of the resulting fishbowl poems on the blog for everyone to enjoy, and an extra one if there's at least one new prompter or donor. The rest will be available for audience members to buy, and whatever's left over will go into my archive for magazine submission. I'm not running the whole perk stack since this fishbowl is itself a perk, but you still get those two.
If you enjoy my poetry -- or if you just love poetry in general, or want to promote interest in Monster House -- please mark the fishbowl date on your calendar. Drop by and give me some ideas, comment on the posted poetry, encourage people to come look, whatever tickles your fancy. I hope to see you then!
dancing_serpent