Wealth re-distribution in the USA [rah, rah, rah]

[rich]

one almost feels bad for the germans, stuck in a debt-laden morass.
its all helmut kohl's fault (if you've been reading transcripts in Der
Spiegel of his conversations with Gorbachev right before the fall of
the Soviet Union, you'll laugh at the stupidity of the man) pushing
for the euro.
michael lewis' recent piece on Germany, good as it is, in the latest
Vanity Fair with its allusions to Germans love of shit and money
smacks of a Pynchonian type of prejudice
I liked that in Germany to avoid layoffs companies jiggered with
employee hours so no one lost their jobs. If anything, German workers
complain that wages have not risen comparable to German companies
profits. No doubt they'll figure something out way before any
like-minded happens in the US or Britain.
But in the end Germany may have to open its wallets again to save
Helmut Kohl's dream. I'd be shocked if they ever agreed to a eurobond.
like a swimmer attaching itself to a drowning person

rich

On Tue, Aug 23, 2011 at 10:12 AM, alice wellintown
<alicewellintown at gmail.com> wrote:
>> you could also say the same about Iran, lots of poorer classes love
>> Mahmoud or Venezuela
>
> The huge difference, obviously, is that Brasil is no longer ruled by a
> dictator; Lula, a former shoe shine and lathe opperator, then labor
> leader, managed to get elected president and then grow an economy
> that, despite the political factions and corruption, raised the
> standard of living of the vast majority, and focused on the landless
> poor. Dilma, a woman, yes, an a former rebel who was imprisoned and
> tourtured, has, already taken steps to deal with corruption while she
> extends and expands the policies that are supporting the poor and
> powerless masses. I am biased, of course, but in my mind, for the
> first time, the words on the banner of Brasil ring true, Order &
> Progress. These are ideas that Americans, who have a solid base in
> English/Irish & German stock, simply take as given them with manifest
> destiny, even feel guilt for, but nothing is more golden than order
> and progress and the Americans, now getting a reminder from the only
> European nation with any, Germany, despite their AA rating from S&P,
> are the model of it.
>
>>
>> Dilma has an uphill battle, getting out of Lula's shadow, large
>> learning curve, and tackling crippling corruption, and an unwieldy
>> coalition. luckily she dumped her chief of staff. all things being
>> relative one could argue that corruption isn't as bad as in those
>> other three BRIC states. suppose we'll have to wait and see. but let
>> us remember Lula and his successor have made it policy to make nice
>> with the finance people which surprised some of their supporters. a
>> necessary evil one might say but w/o the submissiveness of someone
>> like Obama fortunately
>> good to see more women in power in latin america (viz Argentina).
>> we just need less of the Chavezs and Castros w/o returning to
>> military/family elites
>>
>> rich
>>
>> On Tue, Aug 23, 2011 at 6:47 AM, alice wellintown
>> <alicewellintown at gmail.com> wrote:
>>> Lula,  and now Dilma, have proven that it can be done. While not
>>> perfect, Lula deserves a Nobel. Brazil has a long way to go, but at
>>> least the distribution of wealth is more than lip service in Brazil.
>>>
>>
>