Friday, February 19, 2016

The Donors of Clinton World

 Part One of a continuing series.

"Dear Millenials" (sic), read the Tweet,"you, are entitled to nothing. You deserve nothing. And nothing is ever, ever free. t"

This Gingrich-like threat comes not from the GOP.  Rather, it was Tweeted out by Democratic campaign bundler Allan Berliant in conjunction with a closed-door fundraiser he hosted for Hillary Clinton last week. The Empress-in-Waiting was too busy campaigning to attend in person, but she sent the ever reliable Bill in as a sloppy second. Here's a selfie that Berliant posted of his private party. He calls it "Hangin With Bill."


 Misery You Can Believe In: No Free Lunch, No Free Tuition


Berliant himself has worked very hard for his money, having married into it. He got his start in nutrition and non-union labor working for Tyson Foods, the Arkansas-based factory farm corporation which helped bankroll the Clintons' initial rise to power back in the heyday of the Reagan Revolution. Berliant left the company around the same time that Bill and Hill left the White House. He then started a new, Cincinnati-based firm called BestEXPress. Originally limited to the simple marketing of name brand junk food, it has since expanded into "manufacturing" its own culinary products, with mass-produced frozen pizza for school cafeterias its homegrown appetizing specialty. But its main function remains searching out the most advertised packaged food on the market, repackaging it, and then selling it at a markup to time-strapped consumers as a brand-new product. Berliant works very hard shopping for high-nitrite Oscar Mayer bologna, Tyson mystery meat, and high-fat Pillsbury Doughboy rolls to sell to all those lazy "Millenials." (He obviously didn't work too hard in school actually learning how to spell. It's Millennials, Berliant! Three Els and two Ens. If you're going to insult and castigate an entire generation of people, the least you can do is spell their cohort correctly and learn proper comma etiquette!)


Let, Them Eat Pizza With a Side of Pancakes. Rrrrich!


In an interview with the Cincinnati Enquirer published in 2001, Berliant talked about his company's ethos: Convenience, Convenience, Convenience.
  “The industry flat out has not been meeting the needs of a changing consumer world. Companies have put out low-quality low-end products. We bring higher-quality products and the comfort of brand to consumers. With the brands come an expectation of quality.”
 While the unhealthy food is designed to appeal mostly to those lazy kids he seems to so despise, adults scrambling from one crappy part-time job to the next can find that a Berliant ready-to-eat meal is as close as the neighborhood 7-11 or gas station vending machine. They can eat and gain comfort from brand names all in one meal-bolt. Prepackaged breakfast, lunch and dinner is a billion-dollar-a-year business. Sales are ballooning as fast as the waistlines of low-wage workers, stressed out on both cortisol and empty calories. 

  I imagine that if Hillary Clinton is elected to the White House, all of Michelle Obama's good work on healthy eating might be in danger of going right down the tubes. That is, if the research by Gilens and Page is correct, if it's true that political donors tend to get whatever they want. Perhaps Hillary, as a "pragmatic progressive" will split the difference and put pizza and vending machines back in lunchrooms as long as the kids are willing to work hard and clean the cafeteria and the bathrooms after they eat. It will certainly save on unionized janitorial overhead. Plus, it will bring back fond memories of the time when Bill triangulated with that daddy of all millennial-haters, Newt Gingrich, to end welfare as we know it. 

One of the places where Bill sent those welfare moms was his old sponsor, Tyson Foods. The women were "sanctioned" -- the Clintonoid euphemism for threatened cut-off of their benefits -- to go to work at this low-wage food factory and other "Direct Job Placement" centers in order to trim the welfare rolls. As Hillary bragged in her memoir, the "trimming" involved slashing mothers from public assistance at a rate of 60 percent. Poor women with very young children were, and are, "lifted out of poverty" by facing the choice between working and starving.

As the late Christopher Hitchens wrote in his blistering anti-Clinton polemic, "No One Left to Lie To," (published before he tragically went over to the dark side of neoconservativism)
Supplied by the state with a fearful, docile labor force, the workhouse masters are relatively untroubled by unions, or by any back-talk from the staff. Those who have thus been "trimmed" from the welfare rolls have done no more than disappear into a twilight zone of casual employment, uninsured illness, intermittent education for their children, and unsafe or temporary accommodation. Only thus - by their disappearance from society - can they be counted as a "success story" by ambitious governors, and used to qualify tightfisted states for "caseload-reduction credits" from the federal government. 
The chairman of Tyson, Hitchens wrote, was so thrilled with all the new cheap labor afforded by Clinton's Welfare "Reform" that he transformed his man-cave into a facsimile of the Oval Office, with even the doorknobs shaped in ovals to resemble chicken eggs.

As Tyson alum and loyal Hillary Clinton bundler Allan Berliant puts it to the youth of America: "You are entitled to nothing. You deserve nothing.  And nothing is ever, ever free. Work For It!"

Nothing will ever, ever change in Clinton World, no matter how populist and progressive Hillary Clinton makes herself out to be. 

She is marketing herself the same way that Berliant markets his junk food. She collects ideas and borrows sentences from the Bernie Sanders campaign, repackages them up into slick infomercials, and then passes them off as her own creation. 

Even her smile looks flash-frozen.


Workin It: Berliant and Clinton At a Fundraiser Last Summer.
Guests Were Invited to Pay $2,700 for Their Own Photo With Hillary

23 comments:

  1. I only caught a snippet of last night's town hall meeting on my computer between Bernie and Hillary (separately)? (it was not broadcast in Canada) where a former Clinton supporter asked her pointedly why she did not release her speeches. There ensued the usual response about when everyone else does including Bernie, etc. who received a paltry bit over $1000 for two speeches I believe which he donated to charity. The questioner did not look convinced which may be contributing to her lowering numbers of support nation wise.
    If there was anything else of importance discussed would appreciate some comments about how things went.

    Hope tomorrow's vote will favor Bernie.

    Hope your revelations of donors to the Clintons will help Karen.

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  2. Hillary Clinton’s Great Nursing Home Rip-Off http://www.counterpunch.org/2016/02/19/hillary-clintons-great-nursing-home-rip-off/


    Some more ammunition about Hillary's great deeds.

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  3. Seen on the state faceb0ok page for Sanders:
    I live in the Greater (redacted) area, and that qualifies me to say we need all the help we can get in (redacted). The state is waaaay too red, and waaaay too uneducated about politics and parties. I know people who need everything that Obama was about, and everything that #BernieSanders is about, but they continue to vote R! You all are totally awesome. Thank you soooo much! You can thank yourselves for being so dedicated when #BernieSanders takes the Oath of Office!
    What is up with this? I was behind a car with an Obama/Biden sticker (2012 vintage) and a Sanders sticker.
    Anyway, that is a great way to get people into the fold-- describe them as uneducated (unlike this woman) and tell them they need "everything Obama and Bernie are about".

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  4. To Make Health Care for All a Reality, Stop Killing People https://shar.es/14Vt34 via @sharethis


    From Truthout

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  5. A bit off topic, but good information considering Hillary's criticism that Bernie wants to give 'Free this, and free that' to everyone.

    'Americans Can Study in Germany For Free, in English'

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/02/20/americans-can-study-in-germany-for-free-in-english-an-increasing-number-are-doing-it/

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  6. "May his bigoted, mysoginistic, homophobic Christofascist ideology rot in the ground with his putrid corpse."



    Comment (not mine) after an article about Scalia's funeral.

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  7. From Hillary's victory speech in Nevada:

    "But I want you to think about this. It can't be just about what we're going to give to you. It has to be about we're going to build together. Your generation is the most tolerant and connected our country has ever seen. In the days ahead, we will propose new ways for more Americans to get involved in national service and give back to our communities, because every one of us has a role to play in building the future we want."

    In other words, stop whining you bunch of spoiled brats! I've got a plan. I'm going to draft all of you into national service. Did you think the Selective Service was just for men and just for wars? Not anymore! Women will now have an equal chance to throw their lives away in corporate servitude - for free!

    My new Servants of America Program will allow all you younguns to redirect your misplaced Political Revolution energy after I succeed in stealing the nomination by hook and by crook from your whacky Socialist grandpa. So get over it already! Get ready to serve ME, Empress Hillary.

    With all the volunteer hours I'm going to wring out of you, we can rebuild our country without having to raise taxes on the rich, which will allow them to be the Job Creators for all those low wage immigrants we'll welcome with open arms. So, you see, it's a win-win! Oh, and in case you're wondering, NO, you won't be able to discharge you student debt through national service. That's the banks money and they want it back with hefty interest. So cough it up, suckers!

    I'm also thrilled to announce that this vast network of equal opportunity slave labor, I mean volunteers, will be administered by the Bill, Hillary, and Chelsea Clinton Foundation through generous grants from the Federal Government. I will issue Executive Orders on Day 1 as the Very First Woman President to get this program launched and fully funded. The Clinton Foundation already provides services in numerous areas on behalf of the Federal Government through grants, so we're experienced. We know how to get things done, including buying elections!

    Now I just have to make a deal with my friend Donald Trump to get him to drop out of the race at the last minute.

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  8. The media is starting to engage in the old Occupy treatment of Sanders supporters.

    Remember when Occupy protesters were put down as being dirty, lice infested kids in addition to being unfocused and unemployed street urchins? All kinds of 'news' articles are now cropping up (and being passed around) that are similarly marginalizing of Sanders supporters. First we were called sexist Berniebros, then wishful believers in fairy tales, then Hillary herself starting up with essentially 'greedy kids wanting free stuff', now it's incidents of rude and obnoxious behavior.

    There were 3 articles I read just yesterday: Sexist Bernie supporters rudely booing Hillary during her victory speech; racist Bernie supporters chanting 'Speak in English!'; and a man wearing Bernie buttons who is being investigated by the Secret Service after he dropped off a Hillary obituary notice at a newspaper office and drove away in his Bernie bumper sticker adorned car.

    If that media treatment works, soon it will be embarrassing, if not risky, to identify as a Sanders supporter. That could have an especially chilling effect on caucuses where, rather than privately and secretly casting a ballot, you must publicly take a stand for a candidate and expose yourself to repercussions. As anyone from a small town can tell you, that can have consequences that simply aren't worth it.

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  9. The Crisis of Minority Unemployment http://nyti.ms/1oBLeR4


    A vital NYtimes editorial which explains the neglect of young blacks via poor education, etc. that prevents the from obtaining or keeping jobs and the role of Congress in this issue. The comments are interesting and it is highly unlikely that Hillary Clinton will change the dynamics if she is in office.
    Meanwhile, as long as black voters support her, Bernie Sanders will not have a chance to foment change which keeps things status quo with the establishment. Ironic.

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  10. To give some perspective on Hillary's 'big win', only 11,827 Democrats cast their votes in Nevada. That number is equivalent to the population of one very small city. Of those, 6240 voted for Hillary, and she beat Bernie by 649 votes. Most people probably have more Friends on Facebook than that!

    6240 people doesn't sound like such an impressive win to me.

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  11. Annenigma:

    Unfortunately, larger populations voting for her will involve more people helping to put her in office and not much of a numerical advantage will be necessary especially involving superdelegates. It will be all the more wrenching if she wins by a small margin even legitimately with the help of black voters.

    Then all the people that voted for her will deserve what they get but they will not see it that way. There has to be a mental revolution along with a political one. But hopefully if things get more obviously bad, people will begin to rally one hopes. Sorry to be so pessimistic but I guess watching the ignorance of CNN pundits who are supposedly educated coming out with their comments is mind boggling.
    But we have to be supportive of all the people helping Bernie, especially the young people who see through the corruption and dishonesty. If I lived in the U.S. I would go talk to the students in my community about what has and will be happening to democracy in the U.S. I hope you are in contact with your community Annenigma, as you have much you can teach them, even if it causes rifts between generations.


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  12. Berners should be encouraged by the result in Nevada. A year ago, Nevada was "in the bag" for Hillary with something like a 33% lead over Bernie. The unexpected began to happen, and by December her lead was down to 23%, but still a hefty margin. Now look at the numbers just posted by Annenigma. What if the Nevada caucuses had taken place a month later? Hillary didn't beat Bernie; the clock did. Go ahead, hope. Over the long haul, so the story goes, it's the tortoise, not the hare, who's first across the finish line.
    http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2016/02/hillary-clinton-nevada-bernie-sanders#12

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  13. Forgive me, but I need to rant!

    Donald Trump tells his followers to boycott Apple until it unlocks the terrorist cell phone for the Feds, and Trumpsters are on board. It's as if they're finally on a team and have a leader, if not a mission, purpose, and direction. They are psyched and bonded. I've seen it already in my small town and it's astounding.

    Bernie talks about taking on the Triplets of Establishment Power (financial, political, and media) but we're supposed to wait until he gets elected to get started? How about asking us to do things like boycotting any and all media establishments that have been blacking out his candidacy for months on end. In other words, to put our money where our mouth is. Apparently people need to be told by someone they like, respect, and support first.

    Trump has the money, mouth, confidence, brutal honesty, following, and instincts to create force multipliers - unlike professional politicians like Bernie who think inside the box. Hillary the lawyer-politician cheats at every opportunity by breaking and bending rules and laws, and simply lying or changing her tune whenever it suits her. She's more of a businesswoman of the used car variety than a professional politician.

    At this point of pervasive disgust with the establishment on both sides of the aisle, people are craving honesty like a bunch of desert dwellers in a 100-year drought. Yet Bernie is rationing his refreshingly clean water of honesty while Hillary is offering buckets of salty ocean water that looks wet and drinkable but is contaminated with lies and will end up killing us. Bernie's holding back on so much. We can only guess why.

    Personally, I feel this is the last chance left in my lifetime to help overturn the status quo and set things in a new direction, even if forward motion takes a lot longer. It frustrates me that Bernie is still playing the same old game by the same old rules within a corrupt party, relying on traditional campaign machinery and techniques not suitable for a political revolution. He can raise tons of money online for paid ads, but people tune those out. He should ask us to 'take on' the media who have been blacking him out. Call a spade a spade.

    Trump had the guts and honesty to diss former President George Bush and his lies about WMDs and the disaster of Iraq, yet he still won the South Carolina primary handily. Bernie gets bitch-slapped by Obama with a public endorsement of Hillary and he assures us that the President says he'll 'maintain' his neutrality and says he believe him. That's as bad as repeating that he likes and respects Hillary. It diminishes his honesty brand! Then Obama slaps him again by putting out a message that he wants Hillary to win.

    If Bernie really wants to take on the Triplets of Establishment Power (financial, political, media), he should start now by suggesting what we can DO NOW, rather than waiting for a day that may never come. There's nothing like engaging in a common task, i.e. taking action by DOING, to build unity and bond people together in common cause. Perhaps a march on Washington in April would have that effect, but April may be too late.

    Bernie should crowd source his campaign ideas instead of paying former Obama campaign staff to help him win. I don't think you can start a political revolution designed by establishment professionals leftover from the Obama campaign who are used to thinking inside the box. 'A Future To Believe In'? Oh please.

    Bernie must cash in his most valuable political asset, his honesty, and start telling a a lot more of it right away, or we're all doomed. People just aren't hearing the full telling of truth yet because he's hedging his bets to protect Hillary and the corporate Democrats, but I bet when/if he does, he's rewarded.

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  14. There are a lot of good articles and comments written in the progressive news organizations which most people don't even know about and they are struggling financially to exist. Therefore it is claimed we have freedom of speech. But you cannot say what you want unless people support you financially and even the main media often cannot manage to exist financially too well. People use the TV and Internet for news and don't have time or money to pay for subscriptions like the nytimes in order to get it on the internet. So it all boils down to money that the upper percenters have and can give us their take on reality in order to protect their assets. I wonder ,if social democratic countries allow newspapers to exist by supporting them in order to get the honest truth about the countries they live in.
    Hillary of course doesn't like Denmark and I wonder what they have to say about her.

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  15. Annenigma: part 2.

    You bring up concerns about Bernie's presentations that trouble me as well. Instead of repeating the same phrases about a political revolution, etc. we need a step by step agenda as to what has to be done. It sounds like Bernie does not know what he will do should he be in office and that has to be clarified now, as you said. He should also not be afraid to point out specific areas that Obama has not tackled that should have been, etc. As to tax changes, have a clear outline as to where and how this should be accomplished for specific results with all the financial details in place. He has people that he should use for this information and slam facts about the opposition more clearly. How about you writing to Bernie, I am sure they are interested in supporters' input. I always appreciate your and our other gang's comments. Keep it up.

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  16. Pearl, do you have the right address to send an email to Bernie? It probably won't help but it can't hurt to try.

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  17. annenigma:

    Just put the name Bernie Sanders on the line for sending out an email and it will turn into info etc. on the second line and press it back go the first sending line. You can indicate the topic on the second line. Sometimes the assistants send a note of thanks. and no it won't hurt as someone will read it and could pass it on.





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  18. The Good, the Bad, and the not-so-beautiful Good and Bad.

    OK, so nobody in the clubhouse is thinking this time around (2016) of voting for the Lesser Evil (HRC), the Greater Evil understood as being, once again, whatever the Republicans serve up in the general election. And why not TLOTE, need we remind ourselves? Because, as the principles declare in the following essay, the Lesser Evil only serves to pave the way for the Greater Evil.
    http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/why_i_support_dr_jill_stein_for_president_20160221

    Fine. Now what about another choice that might come before the thinking voter, this time between the Superior Good and the Lesser Good, I mean between Jill Stein and Bernie Sanders (should he win the Democratic nomination or go independent if screwed by superdelegates at the convention). Would supporting the Lesser Good (Bernie) instead of the Superior Good (Stein) stand a better chance of placing power into good hands? Either choice might lead to alarming consequences, like a Republican plurality in a three-way race that would split the left. What would you do if we were ever so lucky as to face this dilemma?

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  19. @Jay

    It's not a given that we can vote for Jill Stein or anyone else that doesn't have ballot access in our home states. Here in Montana the Green Party hasn't succeeded in getting ballot access for the Presidential elections for years. I'll have to wait and see if they succeed this time.

    "In the 2012 election, the Green Party had presidential ballot lines in 37 states including the District of Columbia, reaching 82% of voters. As of January 1, 2016, the Green Party is already on the ballot in 22 states, is actively petitioning in eight other states, and is aiming for ballot lines in all 50 states and the District of Columbia."

    http://www.gp.org/the_green_party_recognizes_five_candidates_for_the_green_presidential_nomination

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  20. For the sake of addressing the dilemma I posed (which I haven't solved for myself), let's dream that the Green Party succeeds in getting on the ballot in 50 states, its territories and all ships at sea. In the following scenario Trump, Cruz or Rubio lead for the Republicans in the general election. Opposing the Republicans is Bernie under the Democratic banner. As his running mate Bernie taps Elizabeth Warren. Jill Stein is Jill Stein representing the Greens. Do we vote Green or Democrat, that is, for the Best or the Pretty Good?

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  21. Or far more likely to be our choices in the real world:

    Hillary Clinton/Julian Castro

    Marco Rubio/Nikki Haley

    Those are the two candidate pairs for the Military-Industrial Complex and political/financial/media Establishment which paves the way for the Empire's dominance throughout our country and the world.

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  22. Julian Castro? Oh lord have mercy. Another f***ing gentrifying, business friendly Democrat ex mayor.

    http://www.bostonreview.net/us/julian-castro-secretary-housing-urban-developmentDemocratic mayor.

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  23. correct link
    http://www.bostonreview.net/us/julian-castro-secretary-housing-urban-development

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