Blog By Ed Kent: October 2008

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

How Presidents Control Our Future

Too many people don't realize that presidents control our society for many years after their terms in office through judicial appointments. It will be no accident that corporations will be favored over individuals for many decades in the future per Bush's right wing appointments to our courts. Next is line is the Supreme Court which can be similarly tipped far to the right by a McCain election -- so he has indicated. Read the following and weep. The Federalist Society mentioned in the article is a far right legal association. Ed Kent

.........................

Appeals Courts Pushed to Right by Bush Choices
By CHARLIE SAVAGE
By appointing younger and more conservative judges, the
administration has transformed federal appeals courts.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/29/us/29judges.html?th&emc=th
--
"A war is just if there is no alternative, and the resort to arms is legitimate if they represent your last hope." (Livy cited by Machiavelli)
--
Ed Kent 212-665-8535 (voice mail only) [blind copies]
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CollegeConversation
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PeaceEfforts
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/EndingPoverty
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/440neighborhood
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/StudentConcerns
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AcademicFreedom
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PrivacyRights
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Israel_Palestine
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FindingHumaneJobs
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/OurStupidEconomy
http://BlogByEdKent.blogspot.com/
http://www.bloggernews.net

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Socrates and Jesus

As a college student I wanted to discover where truth, decency, and justice lay. So I spent seven graduate years studying both theology and philosophy. The iconic figures there were obviously Jesus who gave his life caring for people and Socrates who gave his for the truth. It has been disconcerting to watch American politics degenerate on both fronts. McCain certainly could not claim either of these figures as his guide. How pathetic.

...............................

OP-ED COLUMNIST
A Choice and an Echo
By BOB HERBERT
The heyday of Lee Atwater and Karl Rove is over. Yet
Senator John McCain handed the reins of his campaign to Mr.
Rove's worshipful acolytes.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/28/opinion/28herbert.html?th&emc=th

..................
--
"A war is just if there is no alternative, and the resort to arms is legitimate if they represent your last hope." (Livy cited by Machiavelli)
--
Ed Kent 212-665-8535 (voice mail only) [blind copies]
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CollegeConversation
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PeaceEfforts
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/EndingPoverty
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/440neighborhood
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/StudentConcerns
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AcademicFreedom
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PrivacyRights
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Israel_Palestine
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FindingHumaneJobs
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/OurStupidEconomy
http://BlogByEdKent.blogspot.com/
http://www.bloggernews.net

King's Poor People's Campaign

Poor People's Campaign

In 1968, King and the SCLC organized the "Poor People's Campaign" to address issues of economic justice. The campaign culminated in a march on Washington, D.C. demanding economic aid to the poorest communities of the United States. King traveled the country to assemble "a multiracial army of the poor" that would march on Washington to engage in nonviolent civil disobedience at the Capitol until Congress created a bill of rights for poor Americans.[90][91]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Luther_King#Poor_People.27s_Campaign.2C_1968

..............................

During the last year of his life Martin Luther King, Jr.'s popularity with mainline America was declining -- both because of his opposition to the Viet Nam war but also because he had moved his goals on from equal voting rights to equal economic opportunity. At that time African Americans, other minorities, women were frequently denied access both to jobs and higher education.

I mention this because Obama is being attacked by McCain now precisely because he previously cited this denial of equal opportunity as one of the goals which the civil rights movement failed to achieve. McCain lives in his own world of privilege as the husband of a lady who inherited hundreds of millions from a beer company and he forgets or denies past history as those entering old age are prone to do.
--
"A war is just if there is no alternative, and the resort to arms is legitimate if they represent your last hope." (Livy cited by Machiavelli)
--
Ed Kent 212-665-8535 (voice mail only) [blind copies]
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CollegeConversation
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PeaceEfforts
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/EndingPoverty
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/440neighborhood
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/StudentConcerns
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AcademicFreedom
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PrivacyRights
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Israel_Palestine
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FindingHumaneJobs
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/OurStupidEconomy
http://BlogByEdKent.blogspot.com/
http://www.bloggernews.net

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

What Does 'Winning the War' in Iraq Mean?

[So far as the reports from Iraq indicate, there is no way we can keep the peace in Iraq short of permanent occupation -- which the dominate Shiites obviously do not want. The Kurds have gone their own way and the Sunnis are full of doubts as an endangered minority. The dream of an ordered democracy there is probably a century or so out of date, given the tribal rivalries deeply embedded and unleashed by our war ON Iraq.

And so 'winning' it goes. Ed Kent]

..............................

Iraqi Cabinet Wants Security Agreement Altered
By ALISSA J. RUBIN and KATHERINE ZOEPF
Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the United States Joint
Chiefs of Staff, issued a stark warning to the Iraqis to
think hard before rejecting the agreement.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/22/world/middleeast/22iraq.html?th&emc=th
--
"A war is just if there is no alternative, and the resort to arms is legitimate if they represent your last hope." (Livy cited by Machiavelli)
--
Ed Kent 212-665-8535 (voice mail only) [blind copies]
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CollegeConversation
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PeaceEfforts
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/EndingPoverty
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/440neighborhood
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/StudentConcerns
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AcademicFreedom
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PrivacyRights
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Israel_Palestine
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FindingHumaneJobs
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/OurStupidEconomy
http://BlogByEdKent.blogspot.com/
http://www.bloggernews.net

Monday, October 20, 2008

McCain Cons Workers

[There is nothing new, I guess about Republicans doing their best to con American workers. As the Krugman column below indicates, it has been going on since Nixon. This really gets to me personally, as I was a blue collar worker summers during my college days and really cared about my buddies and vice versa -- construction, factory, waste product recycling. Not all that stuff was healthy or safe. I would not have been able to work to 74, had I continued as a physical worker. My back would not have made it. The rip off which Krugman predicts with an McCain election scares me stiff -- particularly with his back up who is a featured speaker at anti-American parity conferences (The Alaskan Independence Party this year)

Let us hope that American workers are not yet again conned. Read Krugman for economic details. Ed Kent]

.....................................

OP-ED COLUMNIST
The Real Plumbers of Ohio
By Paul Krugman
John McCain's strategy, in this final stretch, is based on
the belief that Republicans can still pursue plutocratic
policies while claiming to be the party of regular guys.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/20/opinion/20krugman.html?th&emc=th
--
"A war is just if there is no alternative, and the resort to arms is legitimate if they represent your last hope." (Livy cited by Machiavelli)
--
Ed Kent 212-665-8535 (voice mail only) [blind copies]
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CollegeConversation
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PeaceEfforts
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/EndingPoverty
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/440neighborhood
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/StudentConcerns
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AcademicFreedom
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PrivacyRights
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Israel_Palestine
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FindingHumaneJobs
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/OurStupidEconomy
http://BlogByEdKent.blogspot.com/
http://www.bloggernews.net

Crooks Then and Now

[When we were living in Harlem as grad students in the late 1950s
we discovered that our area was "red Lined" i.e. credit was denied to any who lived there. This was a wide spread practice directed mainly against minorities. The upshot was that we were prey to local crooks who would offer to sell a TV at $10.00 per month with no end period, i.e. really a rip off lease. The wealthy father-in-law of a sister-in-law also living there was outraged! I assume that over the years reforms have been attempted which sadly have unleashed yet another set of rip off artists.

And so it goes. Ed Kwnt]

.....................................

THE RECKONING
Building Flawed American Dreams
By DAVID STREITFELD and GRETCHEN MORGENSON
Henry G. Cisneros spent years helping low-income families
buy homes, part of a broad national trend with dire
consequences.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/19/business/19cisneros.html?th&emc=thba ckground
--
"A war is just if there is no alternative, and the resort to arms is legitimate if they represent your last hope." (Livy cited by Machiavelli)
--
Ed Kent 212-665-8535 (voice mail only) [blind copies]
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CollegeConversation
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PeaceEfforts
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/EndingPoverty
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/440neighborhood
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/StudentConcerns
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AcademicFreedom
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PrivacyRights
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Israel_Palestine
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FindingHumaneJobs
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/OurStupidEconomy
http://BlogByEdKent.blogspot.com/
http://www.bloggernews.net

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Republican Reps Conspire to Steal $350 Million from Military

China Buys Bankrupt U.S.?

The U.S. has been blowing its economy on military spending (more than the rest of the would combined) while China has been putting its efforts into its economy which is now empowered both to buy us up and displace us from our traditional power centers. The Soviet Union blew itself away with excessive military spending, too, as have others in history.

My heart goes out to those who are now suffering the pain. One of those publicized today was a small town supported by a cookie factory which suddenly has closed its doors and its health insurance coverage for its employees -- most of the workers in the town. This pattern is now being repeated large and small around our nation. Where it will end no one seems to know. I know of too many people personally who are being so wiped out. Help!
--
"A war is just if there is no alternative, and the resort to arms is legitimate if they represent your last hope." (Livy cited by Machiavelli)
--
Ed Kent 212-665-8535 (voice mail only) [blind copies]
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CollegeConversation
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PeaceEfforts
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/EndingPoverty
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/440neighborhood
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/StudentConcerns
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AcademicFreedom
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PrivacyRights
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Israel_Palestine
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FindingHumaneJobs
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/OurStupidEconomy
http://BlogByEdKent.blogspot.com/
http://www.bloggernews.net

Saturday, October 11, 2008

"Kill Him!"

The tactics of the Republican Party are more and more beginning to resemble the brutal ones of the CIA that were used to remove disfavored political leaders in the Middle East and particularly Latin America again and again during the past century. One cannot in a short post detail all the horrors country by country, but the general attack modes in ascending scale have been extensively reported now: 1) smear a disfavored leader, 2) assassinate him, and if these don't work, 3) send in the troops. Check out the instances ranging from Chile and Guatemala to Iran Needless to say, those who have had their democracies so sabotaged have no reason to love the U.S. And now most of Latin America is wandering out of our sphere of influence.

All the above is cited because of the Palins/McCain hate attacks on Barack Obama which do put his life at risk. Those of us who were around all too well remember the assassinations of JFK, King, Bobby Kennedy and attempt on the life of Reagan -- nut cases presumably stirred up by the hate stuff that was floating around in those days.

Let it not happen again. Get rid of these hate mongers ASAP with a solid ballot on November 4.
--
"A war is just if there is no alternative, and the resort to arms is legitimate if they represent your last hope." (Livy cited by Machiavelli)
--
Ed Kent 212-665-8535 (voice mail only) [blind copies]
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CollegeConversation
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PeaceEfforts
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/EndingPoverty
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/440neighborhood
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/StudentConcerns
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AcademicFreedom
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PrivacyRights
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Israel_Palestine
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FindingHumaneJobs
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/OurStupidEconomy
http://BlogByEdKent.blogspot.com/
http://www.bloggernews.net

Friday, October 10, 2008

Global Markets Panic

Monday, October 06, 2008

Today's World Markets Down 4-5%

The early morning financial news was grim -- world markets dropping radically despite U.S. effort and more big banks being bailed out.

I wonder whether the McCain crew can halt their mud slinging long enough to focus on the central problem facing us all? Shall watch the debate tomorrow and hope for better. Ed Kent
--
"A war is just if there is no alternative, and the resort to arms is legitimate if they represent your last hope." (Livy cited by Machiavelli)
--
Ed Kent 212-665-8535 (voice mail only) [blind copies]
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CollegeConversation
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PeaceEfforts
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/EndingPoverty
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/440neighborhood
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/StudentConcerns
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AcademicFreedom
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PrivacyRights
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Israel_Palestine
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FindingHumaneJobs
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/OurStupidEconomy
http://BlogByEdKent.blogspot.com/
http://www.bloggernews.net

Name: Ed Kent

Location: New York, New York, United States

As of 2007, I have ended formal teaching of philosophy -- social/political/legal -- and a couple of courses in religion and one in psychology as well -- at Vassar College, Duchess Community College, Hunter, CCNY, Barnard, Columbia and finally Brooklyn where I spent the bulk of my teaching career. I am now reverting to some careers explored along the way -- journalism (wrote for Sports Illustrated, Fortune, and Architectural Forum as an undergraduate and also Chaired the Yale Daily News). Following studies in Britain as a teen exchange student, I thought of joining the Foreign Service and maintained a lifetime interest in the rule of law and human rights standards. Living in Manhattan, I am enjoying engaging in local politics, too. Currently I am assisting my wife in challenging a Columbia University extension into lower West Harlem -- we have both lived and worked in Harlem and have many friends there. I manage several Yahoo groups that are listed in my signature which reflect some of my other active interests. Have many wonderful email friends scattered around the globe with whom I communicate daily.

View my complete profile

Blog By Ed Kent