Miriam,
Sure, it's more than scary. We, the working class Americans, are
facing the possibility of a dictatorship unlike anything ever seen in
our human history. Only in science fiction has there been such total
subjugation conceived. To be honest, looking into my crystal ball, it
looks very grim. At first it was so gloomy looking that I gave it a
good rubbing with glass cleaner. But it's not on the surface. It's
total contamination. If I were younger, or even if I could drive, I'd
probably get out of my office chair and try speaking to various
groups.
But how do we balance the heavy onslaught by the Ruling Class, with
our little whispers? And they are out to stomp out those little
whispers, too. If we lose the means of communication, and I do
believe that is high on their "to do" list, we will be in a serious
way.
Carl Jarvis
On 3/20/17, Miriam Vieni <miriamvieni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Carl,
I would like to point out that it is the visciousness of the current
Republican majority coupled with Trump's insanity and alliance with fascist
elements in our society which is causing everything to unravel at such a
frightening pace. It is certainly true that the wealthy always had power and
advantages that the rest of us didn't have. It is true that this country has
always been racist and has had colonial tendencies. We've never been a true
republic. We've never been the country that was presented to us as reality
in our school books. It is also true that because of itsgreed and desertion
of its base, the Democratic Party is complicit in what is happening now. But
we wouldn't be in this nightmare had Trump not been elected, had the
Republicans not gained majorities in both houses of congress, and had they
not taken possession of so many state governments. Yes, all of the trends
were there. But having presidential power in the hands of a maniac flanked
by racists and elitists is terrifying. The Nation magazine did a whole issue
on the Trump administration and the Press and The New Yorker has a very long
article about the same subject. People are so incredibly misled. Truly, they
don't understand the enormity of what's going on. And that is due to the
inadequacy of journalism today. When I was talking with this lovely Jaws
expert on the phone on Saturday, who was trying to help me unravel issues
with Jaws 18 and I mentioned net neutrality, I could tell by her response
that she didn't understand what it is or why the new FCC head might be a
problem. She thinks that net neutrality may make it easier for spam to
appear on her computer. There can't be real resistance to a Fascist takeover
of our country if the majority of people don't understand the issues or what
is happening.
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Carl Jarvis
Sent: Monday, March 20, 2017 11:50 AM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: Entire Homelessness Agency Could Be
Eliminated by Trump's Budget Cuts
I remember the major earthquake in May of 1965, in Seattle. I jumped out of
bed and ran around the house like a chicken with its head cut off. Pictures
were falling off the walls, lamps and knickknacks were dancing off the
tables and shelves. I dashed into my 2 year old daughter's bedroom,
snatched her up and ran to the living room. I stopped, not knowing what I
was going to do to protect her.
Today my little girl is 54 years old, and I still can't figure out how to
protect her. Our very foundation, the house we call America is being shaken
this way and that by a monstrous earthquake named Greed.
Everything is falling around our ears, and we can't grab up the pieces fast
enough to prevent it from crashing. My daughter works for a University.
She has worked all of her adult life. She has Rheumatoid Arthritis and is
Diabetic. Most certainly, in her old age, she will require expensive
medical support. Her husband worked all his adult life, following his
return from the Marines, but he developed Parkinson's and was forced to take
medical retirement.
After very expensive surgery, he is able to provide the home support to his
wife and himself. But his medical expenses will most likely continue
increasing the remainder of his life.
What sort of government would yank the rug out from under people who have
played by the rules, paid their fair share...and more... in taxes and
services to that government?
How much longer will America's Working Class continue protecting Greed's
Right to steal their money, health and dignity? It's past time to mount an
all out attack on Greed.
Carl Jarvis
On 3/19/17, Miriam Vieni <miriamvieni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Additionally, in case you've missed the announcements on various
lists, there are cuts to library services which impact local
libraries, regional talking book libraries, and Bookshare.
Miriam
A homeless person sits near the White House in Washington, D.C. (photo:
Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)
Entire Homelessness Agency Could Be Eliminated by Trump's Budget Cuts
By Alastair Gee, Guardian UK
19 March 17
Shuttering the agency and cutting funds for low-income housing remind
experts of Reagan's deep spending cuts that 'ushered in a new age of
homelessness'
While much of the attention given to Donald Trump's budget proposal
has focused on dramatic cuts at the Environmental Protection Agency
and the state department, amid the many cuts in the plan is the
elimination of the US Interagency Council on Homelessness (Usich).
In addition, Trump's budget would cut billions of dollars of funding
for the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which helps
provide low-income housing.
Diane Yentel, president of the National Low Income Housing Coalition,
warned in a statement that the proposal contained some of the deepest
housing cuts since "President Reagan dramatically reduced funding in
the early 1980s.
Reagan's deep spending cuts ushered in a new age of homelessness."
In an interview, she said the reductions might result in 200,000
low-income people no longer receiving rental assistance, putting them
at risk of losing the roofs over their heads. About 550,000 people
were experiencing homelessness on one night in 2016.
"At a time when we have reached new heights of an affordable housing
crisis, and lowest-income people are being impacted most severely,
cutting resources is the wrong approach to ending homelessness," she
said.
The budget proposal is just that and will probably encounter pushback
from Congress.
The plan also envisions cuts at the Department of Housing and Urban
Development of $6.2bn, or a 13% fall from 2016 levels. These include
programs that enable the development of affordable housing.
The cuts are explained in the proposal as reflecting a commitment to
"fiscal responsibility", and it foresees the slack being taken up by
state and local governments and the private sector.
Shuttering the Usich, meanwhile, would free up its relatively meager
budget of about $3.5m. Yet keeping it open is "simply a prudent
investment", said Nan Roman, head of the National Alliance to End
Homelessness.
"This is one of the places where I think it's penny wise and pound
foolish,"
agreed Barbara Poppe, who headed the council under President Barack
Obama until 2014.
The council was formed in 1987 and serves as a bridge between the
various federal agencies with a stake in homelessness, such as the
departments of veterans affairs or health and human services. It also
connects localities both with resources and with each other as they
seek to bring people off the streets.
Usich "has been essential to the progress we're seeing across the
county that's resulted in cuts to veteran homelessness by one half," Poppe
said.
Homelessness in general has also decreased gradually since the
recession. A Usich spokesperson declined to comment.
While localities are taking a greater role in addressing homelessness
- Los Angeles voters approved a $1.2bn bond measure to house homeless
people in the 2016 elections, for instance - they probably cannot make
up for federal investment, especially not if that investment declines
further.
"They decided to take this on locally because they already had a
federal deficit situation," Poppe said.
In an email to staffers after the numbers emerged, Ben Carson, the new
HUD secretary, asked them to "take some comfort in knowing that
starting numbers are rarely final numbers".
Roman, of the National Alliance to End Homelessness, agrees. But she
is not reassured. "It's a very low starting point," she said. "That's
distressing."
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