- Guests:
- David Horowitz
- Doug Cunningham, Producer/Report for Worker's Independent News.
- Victoria Jones of Talk Radio News
- Topics:
- Why won't the news tell us what's really going on with the anti-health care rallies?
- McCarthyism...is it alive and well on American college campuses?
- If we are to save the planet, should economists learn to subtract?
- Labor update-why are we still outsourcing American jobs?
- Bumper Music:
- Hey Mr. President, Warren Brothers.
- Keep the Light On, Whiskey Falls.
- Crazy, Gnarls Barkley.
- The Revolution Starts Now, Steve Earle (video).
- It's Your Life, Loverboy.
- Come On In, Brad Paisley (video).
- Stand Up, Jet.
- Democracy, Leonard Cohen.
- Today's newsletter has details of today's guests and links to the major stories and alerts that Thom covered in the show, plus lots more. If you haven't signed up for the free newsletter yet, please do. If you missed today's newsletter, it is in the archive.
- Video: GOP Rx for Health Insurance Reform: TV Version. Americans United for Change.
"Why do the health insurance companies and Republicans want to kill President Obama’s health insurance reform? Because they like things the way they are now. Ed Hanway, CEO of insurance giant Cigna, makes $12.2 million a year. That’s $5,883 an hour. Ed makes more in one day, than the average worker makes all year long. Now Ed's retiring with a $73 million golden parachute. The Republican prescription for the health insurance crisis — be as rich as Ed. You'll be happy too." - Clip:
"Too much and for too long we seem to have surrendered personal excellence and community value in the mere accumulation of material things. Our gross national product now is over 800 billion dollars a year, but that gross national product, if we judge the United States of America by that, that gross national product counts air pollution, and cigarette advertising, and ambulances to clear our highways of carnage. It counts special locks for our doors and the jails for the people who break them. It counts the destruction of the redwoods and the loss of our natural wonder in chaotic squall. It counts Napalm, and it counts nuclear warheads, and armored cars for the police to fight the riots in our city. It counts Whitman's rifles and Speck's Knifes and the television programs which glorify violence in order to sell toys to our children. Yet, the gross national product does not allow for the health of our children, the quality of their education, or the joy of their play; it does not include the beauty of our poetry of the strength of our marriages, the intelligence of our public debate for the integrity of our public officials. It measures neither our wit nor our courage neither our wisdom nor our learning, neither our compassion nor our devotion to our country it measures everything in short except that which makes life worth while. And it can tell us everything about America except why we are proud that we are Americans."
Remarks of Robert F. Kennedy at the University of Kansas, March 18, 1968.
- Article: US tyre duties spark China clash By Geoff Dyer and Tom Braithwaite.
"A full-blown trade row erupted between the US and China after Beijing accused Washington of “rampant protectionism” for imposing heavy duties on imported Chinese tyres and threatened action against imports of US poultry and vehicles.Trade relations between two of the world’s biggest economies deteriorated after Barack Obama, US president, signed an order late on Friday to impose a new duty of 35 per cent on Chinese tyre imports on top of an existing 4 per cent tariff.
In his first big test on world trade since taking office in January, Mr Obama sided with America’s trade unions, which have complained that a “surge” in imports of Chinese-made tyres had caused 7,000 job losses among US factory workers.
Chen Deming, China’s minister of commerce, condemned the decision, saying that it “sends the wrong signal to the world” at a time when Washington and Beijing should be co-operating to deal with the worst economic and financial crisis in decades.
“This is a grave act of trade protectionism,” Mr Chen said in a statement. “Not only does it violate WTO rules, it contravenes commitments the US government made at the [April] G20 financial summit.”
Beijing said it had requested WTO-sanctioned consultations with the US over Washington’s new duties on tyres. Yao Jian, a commerce ministry spokesman, said the duties were in ”violation of WTO rules”.
" - Member of the day: Randy Winn gets a signed copy of "Threshold" for...
Ok friends,
For a delightful musical commentary on health care let me heartily recommend the Tom Lehrer-esque “We’re Number 37!!!!!” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVgOl3cETb4
It’s not quite “Born In the USA” but it’ll make you laugh …and think!
