The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas is out with its annual report on America’s banking industry – and the numbers are shocking. Currently – only 5 banks control more than half of all the industry’s assets. That’s right – the top 5 banks in America own 52% of all the wealth in the finance sector. To put that in perspective – in 1970 – the top 5 banks controlled only 17% of the industry’s assets. Not only that – the total wealth owned by the top 10 banks in the nation now equals half of America’s total GDP.

These startling numbers have prompted the President of the Dallas Fed – Richard Fisher – to call for the breaking up of the big banks – warning that they’ve become so large they not only threaten the Federal Reserve’s ability to conduct monetary policy – but also “erode faith in American capitalism.” Fisher also called for tough new financial reforms to strengthen the Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform law. Thanks to three decades of Reaganomic deregulation of Wall Street – we’ve all become slaves to the banksters.

As President Grover Cleveland said in his 1888 State of the Union address to a nation then under the control of the Robber Barons, "Corporations, which should be the carefully restrained creatures of the law and the servants of the people, are fast becoming the people's masters." Here we are again. It’s time to break up Wall Street before they crash our economy for a second time in just a few years.

-Thom

(What do you think will be done? Tell us here.)

Hour One: Live from Florida...latest on Trayvon Martin
- Joe Madison, The Joe Madison Show

Hour Two: Fired for being a creationist...is that ok?
- John G. West, Ph.D.

Geeky Science Rocks- Does being bilingual makes you smarter?

Hour Three: Wisconsin has a Trayvon Martin too
- John Nichols, The Nation Magazine

And, the best of the rest of the news and your calls right here on...

The Thom Hartmann Program...your media support group for "we the people"...TAG, YOU'RE IT!!!!!!!!! (OCCUPY SOMETHING!!!!!)

Wednesday's Daily Stack

Quote: "Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity." -- World Health Organization, 1948.

Article: "Anderson Cooper Interviews Witnesses To Trayvon Martin Shooting" by James Crugnale.

Article: "Nothing to Dispute Sanford Shooter's Self-Defense Claim in Miami Boy's Death: Police Chief" by Edward B. Colby and Gilma Avalos.

Site: "The Equality Trust".

The Big Picture
- Sam Sacks, The Big Picture producer, progressive commentator

Article: "Romney's big day marred by Etch A Sketch remark" by Tom Cohen.

Article: "Trayvon Martin death: How did Stand Your Ground pass Senate 39-0?" by Michael Mayo.

Article: "IMF sees $160 oil risk despite Libyan boost" by Ambrose Evans-Pritchard.

Article: "The Third Industrial Revolution — an interview with Jeremy Rifkin" by Todd Miller.

Article: "U.S. Agencies See No Move by Iran to Build a Bomb" by James Risen and Mark Mazzetti.

Article: "How I would check Iran’s nuclear ambition" by Mitt Romney.

Article: "Former Mossad Director: Romney ‘Is Making The Situation Worse’ With Iran" by Eli Clifton.

Article: "Government Jobs Buoyed Bush’s Economy And Sunk Obama’s (CHART)" by Brian Beutler.

Site: "The James Madison Papers".

Article: "Sean Hannity, Big Journalism run 'ambush interview' on Bono—but it wasn't him. Doh!" by Hunter.

Article: "Grilled by Iran's Parliament, Ahmadinejad is Defiant as Ever" by Babak Dehghanpisheh.

Article: "Bush rejects Taliban offer to surrender bin Laden" by Andrew Buncombe, 15 October 2001.

Article: "My Testimony for the Downing Street Memo Hearings" by Cindy Sheehan, June 16 2005.

Book: "A Charge to Keep: My Journey to the White House" by George W. Bush, Mickey Herskowitz.

Site: "Occupy Wall Street".

Site: "Progressive Democrats of America".

Site: "Democracy for America".

Talk Radio News Segment:
- Ellen Ratner, Bureau Chief

Book: "Self Empowerment: Nine Things the 19th Century Can Teach us About Living in the 21st " by B. Anne Gehman and Ellen Ratner.

Article: "US senators press for position limits in oil markets" by Ayesha Rascoe.

Article: "Obama touts solar in Nev. as part of four-state tour on energy policy" by Scott Wilson.

Article: "President Obama in New Mexico to visit oil fields" by Betsy Blaney.

Article: "Press Gaggle by Press Secretary Jay Carney en route Boulder City, Nevada, 3/21/12".

Article: "Obama won't mark anniversary of health care law" by Donovan Slack.

Article: "JOBS Act for startups bogs down in Senate" by Jim Abrams.

Article: "Peter King: Iran May Have 'Hundreds' Of Hezbollah Agents In U.S." by Andrea Stone.

Video: "We'll Take Care Of The Counting".

Hour Three: Obamacare vs. "The Pipes Plan"
- Sally Pipes, Pacific Research Institute

Article: "Obamacare drives up health care costs for everyone" by Sally Pipes.

Article: "E-mail Print Health care expert Sally Pipes on what could replace Obama" by Sally Pipes.

Book: "The Pipes Plan: The Top Ten Ways to Dismantle Obamacare" by Sally C. Pipes.

Article: "Right-Wing Media Falsely Claim Cost Of Health Care Law Has Doubled" by Media Matters.

Article: "Unplugged McCain sings 'bomb bomb bomb, bomb bomb Iran'" by David Edwards and Ron Brynaert.

Article: "Poll: Israelis Don’t Want Iran Attack Without U.S. Support" by Ali Gharib.

How Obamacare is helping
- Ron Pollock, Families USA

The good: Elaine Johnson: "California Teacher Rescues Toddler From Burning Car" by Katie Kindelan.

The bad: "MN House passes voter ID; Senate next" by Don Davis.

The very, very ugly: "Fox News Commenters React to Trayvon Martin: ‘Good Shot Zimmy’" by Charles Johnson.

Article: "Reported Tuberculosis in the United States, 2010" by CDC.

Article: "Romney Rolls to Illinois Win" by Janet Hook and Patrick O'Connor.

Article: "U.S. women overcharged $1B for healthcare" by UPI.

Article: "Faith Leaders Blast House GOP Budget As ‘Immoral Disaster’ That ‘Robs The Poor’" by Travis Waldron.

Article: "DOJ: Florida Voting Restrictions May Discriminate Intentionally" by Ryan J. Reilly.

Article: "‘Ocean economics’ study shows $2tr/yr cost of climate change" by Christopher Cundy.

Article: "Tennessee Passes ‘Monkey Bill’ To Teach The ‘Controversy’ On Evolution And Climate Science" by Brad Johnson.

Article: "'Israelis Heart Iran' and 'Iranians Love Israel': Citizens Bid for Peace" by Common Dreams.

Article: "Ron Paul: Secret Service Protection A Form Of Welfare" by RTTNews.

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