American Soldier 2003-Present:Hero or Pawn

As I reflect on Beck/Palin speeches last Saturday,I began to think about my feelings concerning young men and women who enlist in our armed services.As a high school teacher,I'm always asking seniors what they are going to do next year after graduation.Many state they are going to two year colleges or additional vocational training in their field.I usually say the typical, best of luck and I hope your successful.When a student tells me they are going to join the Army or the Marines,it usually stops me in my tracks for a second.My first thought is for their safety and I undoubtedly say be careful because the war is so dangerous.They shake their head and say I know.I don't give a speech about my opinions.I just look at them and repeat my initial reaction.

These kids are heroic in battle.Fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq takes tremendous courage .The vast majority want to get home as soon as possible and return to civilian life.They leave behind family and friends and can't wait to get back to love ones.They usually are over their heads like most young soldiers who are in combat within a year of graduation.Unfortunately,many return for additional duty within the year of coming stateside.I believe it gets harder and more dangerous every additional year they serve in the war zone.

I also feel these soldiers are pawns.Many of the young soldiers are encouraged by family to enter the service to secure a good economic future.Many employers love ex soldiers when they retire from service.The military training and experience prepares them for any stateside job. They learn important skills that can be used in our economic system.Unfortunately,they aren't the right reasons to enlist and fight in a war.Many of my students don't have the knowledge and experience to make an educated decision concerning the different political perspectives given in debate about international affairs.They aren't well read concerning the engagement they will risk their lives with.They seem to make their decisions on weak foundations and can't articulate why we are fighting in a given nation.They  regurgitate what they hear on television and it usually is militaristic in nature.

These young soldiers are nice kids that want to do what is best for themselves and the country.Many can't handle the trauma and destruction.The RAND Corporation has reported 320,000 soldiers with some form of brain injuries.The Dept. of Veteran Affairs have diagnosed 120,00 with mental problems(Post Traumatic Stress Disorder).4,416 have died in Iraq with 31,911 injured while 2052 died and 4000 injured in Afghanistan.It has also been reported that 18 vets try to commit suicide daily from both wars.

Beck and Palin want to honor the vets but at the same time feel someone like me doesn't really understand what America stands for and the place designated for the military.They juxtapose God and the military as if they are one and the same.They seems to glorify war as part of good overcoming evil and connected by God through some unique American covenant.They want to separate America from the world as an entity that's special in the eyes of God.They don't feel I care enough about our soldiers but maybe I care more and want peace between countries more than honor and heroism.

Beck and Palin at Lincoln Memorial 2010

At a recent fundraiser for cancer,a few people asked me if I went to the Beck/Palin rally at the memorial on Saturday.They asked because they know I'm at the other spectrum of American politics.I smiled and said no but I was curious about what they did say. Today,I got up early and listened to each speech in full.My first reaction is that they talk in generalities.Such generalities, that they could have been given at a local church or mosque.Beck talked about good and evil in our country's history.He used the word "scars"constantly to describe America's dark side(slavery,maybe socialism(big gov.)).He stated WWII was the greatest generation and he was welcoming Viet Nam vets back now because they weren't in the 60's and early 70's(I guess by people like myself who were against the war).Beck wanted the audience to reflect on the giants that came before us in America and try to be like them.He said we were at a crossroads and must look ahead and believe in advancement like the great leaders of the American past.The crossroad I guess means (1) lack of commitment to God and his guidance and(2)the socialization of government.Beck talked about "someone"ruling America that would bring the darkness and a perspective that doesn't advance the American dream.

He also talked about the sacrifices of all the American soldiers throughout our history.They gave great hope and lets not have their deaths be in vain(big gov. enslavement).He wants everyone to carry a big stick like Moses did for the Jews in Egypt.Beck told the audience to be good Americans and that each can make a difference."One man can change the world"reference was given and that good Americans should pick up a stick and stand for freedom and liberty.So,I don't really know what to say about Beck after reading his speech.He was so vague that I can't respond.I guess he feels many of us don't love America the way he does. He seems to feel progressives are taking the country to an "evil" place where freedom is repressed.He seems to consistently equate the "good" with militarism even when our country doesn't make the appropriate decisions to enter a war.He makes Americans unworthy of liberty if they disagree with international policies of a given administration.Palin just regurgitated what Beck stated`with an emphasis on the military.I tried to be open but unfortunately both speeches just left me empty and uninformed.

Biking at Sandy Hook thinking about Vietnam

I just got back from riding a rental bike from Sandy Hook National Gateway Park and body surfing with children from the United Nations.The riding was wonderful and I rode around Fort Hancock most of the time.Fort Hancock was built in 1895 to protect our N.Y/N.J. waterways.It had significant work during WWII when it had numerous large guns facing the ocean and bay for America's protection from the Nazis.What a war that was?30-40 million died because of total ignorance of life.Dictatorships and monarchies can go astray when they become greedy or insane.

As I rode around the foundations for these massive guns,I began to think of my teenage years and the war in Vietnam.I distinctly remember saying to myself, fighting overseas or joining the Army wasn't for me.I hated fighting in my own neighborhood and broke up numerous fights as a teenager. I always wanted to see a fight end as soon as possible.I would never go kill someone overseas for a political position (the containment of communism).I was interested in love (girlfriend type) and drinking beer,ect. Fighting against someone else (8000 miles away)with high powered weapons seemed crazy to me. I wasn't afraid or disliked my country.I just thought everything I was taught about violence(family and school) ran counter to the draft. The ironic thing about this perspective is that I would have been a wonderful soldier. I was a very good athlete and I'm fairly courageous.I didn't think about dying at a young age and I had good instincts about danger coming from the city.

Anyway,we lost 55,000 there and we're losing soldiers in Afghanistan now on a daily basis.I was thinking we shouldn't have a volunteer Army anymore(vast majority from underclass). We should all serve(male and female) at eighteen in some kind of service to our country.We could be placed in the type of service that we had an interest in.I would hope we could improve the country(building parks,etc.)and avoid getting involved overseas for national security (oil).Our national security should be about protecting our borders,not the 100 yr. love affair with combustion automobiles.It's time to change directions and look towards electric vehicles and improving public mass transit.Well, I can't stay long today...have a peaceful afternoon.

Public Parks..oasis for bottom 80% income level

I went to the National Gateway Park at Sandy Hood,N.J. today.I love public parks and spend a good deal of my free time walking around them.Today, I went swimming and walked along the shore for miles. While in the water, I had a conversation with a woman with a young child. They were so excited and constantly remarked how beautiful everything was. They were from Manhattan and took the ferry from Battery City Park to the Highlands, which is close to Sandy Hook.The ferry cost $80 for a round trip ticket.They didn't have private transportation so I was telling her about the N.J.Transit that travels along the coast to the shore points.I started to think about public transportation in the America.Did you know that in 1936,there was a consortium of oil,tire and truck manufactures that controlled the rail systems of 45 cities and 12 states.Before that GM started purchasing trolley and streetcars from railroad and utilities companies and converting electric transportation to the combustion engine bus lines.They bought so many train lines that by1960,that most of the lines were shut down and the cars scrapped or shipped overseas.Before this siege on the train lines,85% of the cities and towns in America had rail transportation.In the fifties,Eisenhower built 40,000 miles of highways that we ride around on today.The only problem is our population has doubled during the next fifty years,hence,the traffic jams each day.The petroleum industry and automobile manufacturers have left public transportation a mess for suburbia and rural communities.Everyone must use their products to get to work and interact with love ones in the majority of the country.I know the government has a funding ratio of 80%(highways) and 20%(rails).MAYBE THIS RATIO SHOULD BE REVERSED.Nevertheless,it was a delight to be at Sandy Hood today.I admire the foresight our parents had to create so many beautiful parks. It is a great tradition in America that is being continued by many communities.They are usually free to the public or a small fee to pay for the upkeep.The bottom 80% income level citizens (and other levels) are fortunate to have these treasures of America.(the other 20% has access to private facilities) Lets create more with higher taxes on those who can afford it.(1% in nearby Rumson,home of Bruce Springsteen)

Income Disparity in America..

The following statistics are from an article by G.William Domhoff,Sociology Dept.,U.of Cal.,Santa Cruz ..........In the United States, wealth is highly concentrated in a relatively few hands. As of 2007, the top 1% of households (the upper class) owned 34.6% of all privately held wealth, and the next 19% (the managerial, professional, and small business stratum) had 50.5%, which means that just 20% of the people owned a remarkable 85%, leaving only 15% of the wealth for the bottom 80% (wage and salary workers). In terms of financial wealth (total net worth minus the value of one's home), the top 1% of households had an even greater share: 42.7%. Table 1 and Figure 1 present further details drawn from the careful work of economist Edward N. Wolff at New York University (2010).




Table 1: Distribution of net worth and financial wealth in the United States, 1983-2007


Total Net Worth

Top 1 percent Next 19 percent Bottom 80 percent

1983 33.8% 47.5% 18.7%

1989 37.4% 46.2% 16.5%

1992 37.2% 46.6% 16.2%

1995 38.5% 45.4% 16.1%

1998 38.1% 45.3% 16.6%

2001 33.4% 51.0% 15.6%

2004 34.3% 50.3% 15.3%

2007 34.6% 50.5% 15.0%



In terms of types of financial wealth, the top one percent of households have 38.3% of all privately held stock, 60.6% of financial securities, and 62.4% of business equity. The top 10% have 80% to 90% of stocks, bonds, trust funds, and business equity, and over 75% of non-home real estate. Since financial wealth is what counts as far as the control of income-producing assets, we can say that just 10% of the people own the United States of America.



Figures on inheritance tell much the same story. According to a study published by the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, only 1.6% of Americans receive $100,000 or more in inheritance. Another 1.1% receive $50,000 to $100,000. On the other hand, 91.9% receive nothing (Kotlikoff & Gokhale, 2000). Thus, the attempt by ultra-conservatives to eliminate inheritance taxes -- which they always call "death taxes" for P.R. reasons -- would take a huge bite out of government revenues for the benefit of less than 1% of the population. (It is noteworthy that some of the richest people in the country oppose this ultra-conservative initiative, suggesting that this effort is driven by anti-government ideology. In other words, few of the ultra-conservatives behind the effort will benefit from it in any material way.)




Actually, ultra-conservatives and their wealthy financial backers may not have to bother to eliminate what remains of inheritance taxes at the federal level. The rich already have a new way to avoid inheritance taxes forever -- for generations and generations -- thanks to bankers. After Congress passed a reform in 1986 making it impossible for a "trust" to skip a generation before paying inheritance taxes, bankers convinced legislatures in many states to eliminate their "rules against perpetuities," which means that trust funds set up in those states can exist in perpetuity, thereby allowing the trust funds to own new businesses, houses, and much else for descendants of rich people, and even to allow the beneficiaries to avoid payments to creditors when in personal debt or sued for causing accidents and injuries. About $100 billion in trust funds has flowed into those states so far. You can read the details on these "dynasty trusts" (which could be the basis for an even more solidified "American aristocracy") in a New York Times opinion piece published in July 2010 by Boston College law professor Roy Madoff, who also has a book on this and other new tricks: Immortality and the Law: The Rising Power of the American Dead (Yale University Press, 2010).



Numerous studies show that the wealth distribution has been extremely concentrated throughout American history, with the top 1% already owning 40-50% in large port cities like Boston, New York, and Charleston in the 19th century. It was very stable over the course of the 20th century, although there were small declines in the aftermath of the New Deal and World II, when most people were working and could save a little money. There were progressive income tax rates, too, which took some money from the rich to help with government services.



Here are some dramatic facts that sum up how the wealth distribution became even more concentrated between 1983 and 2004, in good part due to the tax cuts for the wealthy and the defeat of labor unions: Of all the new financial wealth created by the American economy in that 21-year-period, fully 42% of it went to the top 1%. A whopping 94% went to the top 20%, which of course means that the bottom 80% received only 6% of all the new financial wealth generated in the United States during the '80s, '90s, and early 2000s (Wolff, 2007).

Income disparity in America