"It's Time for a Change"
Living Up to the Words
...continued from home page
Keeping he poor poorer and the richest richer
What is clearly a policy of keeping the poor poorer and the rich richer has never been so clear as it is today. Many Seniors are well aware of the requirements needed in order to receive Medi-Cal benefits, for example in Los Angeles County California. Seniors must NOT have assets in excess of X number of dollars. Most times, seniors have to sell property and empty bank accounts in order to receive Medi-Cal benefits. As a matter of life and death, many seniors deem this “spending down” of assets a necessity in order to receive medical care.
In comparison, when the big 3 showed up in Washington to ask for billions in assistance back in December 2008, they came as fat cats, in private jets and limousines, and there was no spending down prior to asking for billions from taxpayers. Moreover, yes, Congress approved their funding request. Sending the signal that in order to qualify for taxpayer assistance you simply need to make a plea to Congress.
How much easier does it get companies to qualify and receive the hard earned dollars of American taxpayers? And did you see the flood of request that came in from companies requesting TARP (Trouble Assets Relief Program) funds? Wow! What a feeding frenzy!
What better analogy can one give to show the difference in benefits afforded to the haves and the have-nots? Clearly, benefits in this country are based on class just as with our criminal justice system.
The former President, Secretary of the Treasury Paulson and both houses in Congress all agreed that we had to rush and get these billions of dollars into the hands of Wall Street executives. Only to find out that Congress should have well defined how these funds were to be used.
There are so many other areas of our government that needs reform and not just in the area of corporate greed. Outright abuse of the American taxpayer must cease!
Another for example is our antiquated system of civil rights laws. What continues to escape me is the fact that members of Congress and a vast amount of other Americans are clearly aware that discrimination continues today. Discrimination has taken on a new look than it had back in the 50's and 60's when the country was just getting use to it’s new civil rights legislation. Yet, America has no one that seems to have what it takes to even bring up the issue on a national legislative level proposing new and improved civil rights amendments that are truly aimed at enforcement and punishment of it’s violators.
While I applaud Obama for signing into legislation the Lilly Ledbetter Fairplay Act, which allows workers that allege discrimination on the bases of gender to be given a fairer chance at filing suit against their employers. CFN appeals to the President to not stop here. This is only one small part of the much-needed civil rights legislation that needs to be addressed. Other areas have been screaming for updates as well.
As CFN goes forward, we plan to bring you even more “Unique Perspectives” on what CommonFolkNews and it is family of reader’s think should be included in the "Change for America.”
It is because of the changes that President Obama has targeted, America may after all began to cleanse itself of the corporate greed that has dominated American society and kept the poorer poor, and the made the rich richer. A concept designed to benefit only a select few.
Good luck President Obama and may God’s blessings be with America. We need it.**
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