Fashion Footwear (Texas Women)

Political Cartoon is by Nick Anderson in the Houston Chronicle.

26 Nations Have A Higher Median Wealth

America has always had its rich, and its poor -- but the number of the poor is growing these days. And the reason its growing is because the middle class is shrinking as more Americans experience stagnant wages in the face of growing inflation, which results in a shrinking wealth. Traditionally, at least since the Great Depression, America has had rules in place which forced a fairer capitalism -- and funneled part of the growing productivity into the hands of workers. And these rules were the foundation of a healthy and growing middle class.

In fact, it was probably true years ago that the middle class in the U.S. was one of the world's wealthiest. Sadly that is no longer true. Not only is the middle class shrinking, but its wealth is also shrinking. One of the ways to judge the health of a middle class is to look at the median wealth -- the wealth where half of the population has accumulated more and half has less. One would expect that in the United States, the richest country in the world, that the middle class would be one of the wealthiest in the world (maybe even the wealthiest).

But anyone who thought that is wrong. There are at least 26 other nations (see chart above) that have a wealthier middle class (as determined by median wealth of the country). In fact, at least 14 of those 26 nations have a median wealth more than twice as large as that of the United States. The Huffington Post lists 10 reasons for the shrinking numbers and wealth of the American middle class:

• We don't have real universal health care. We pay more and still have poorer health outcomes than all other industrialized countries. Should a serious illness strike, we also can become impoverished.

• Weak labor laws undermine unions and give large corporations more power to keep wages and benefits down. Unions now represent less than 7 percent of all private sector workers, the lowest ever recorded.

• Our minimum wage is pathetic, especially in comparison to other developed nations. (We're # 13). Nobody can live decently on $7.25 an hour. Our poverty-level minimum wage puts downward pressure on the wages of all working people. Also while we secure important victories for a few unpaid sick days, most other developed nations provide a month of guaranteed paid vacations as well as many paid sick days.

• Wall Street is out of control. Once deregulation started 30 years ago, money has gushed to the top as Wall Street was free to find more and more unethical ways to fleece us.

• Higher education puts our kids into debt. In most other countries higher education is practically tuition free. Indebted students are not likely to accumulate wealth anytime soon.

• It's hard to improve your station in life if you're in prison, often due to drug-related charges that don't even exist in other developed nations. In fact, we have the largest prison population in the entire world, and we have the highest percentage of minorities imprisoned. "In major cities across the country, 80 percent of young African Americans now have criminal records." (See Alexander, Michelle (2010), The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. New York, The New Press. p. 7. as cited in Wikipedia.)

• Our tax structures favor the rich and their corporations who no longer pay their fair share. They move money to foreign tax havens, they create and use tax loopholes, and they fight to make sure the source of most of their wealth -- capital gains -- is taxed at low rates. Meanwhile the rest of us are pressed to make up the difference or suffer deteriorating public services.

• The wealthy dominate politics. Nowhere else in the developed world are the rich and their corporations able to buy elections with such impunity.

• Big Money dominates the media. The real story about how we're getting ripped off is hidden in a blizzard of BS that comes from all the major media outlets... brought to you by...

• America encourages globalization of production so that workers here are in constant competition with the lower wage workers all over the world as well as with highly automated technologies.

But all of these reasons are just parts of one big reason -- the imposition on the U.S. economy of the Republican "trickle-down" economic plan. This tilted the economic playing field toward the richest people and the corporations, leaving most other Americans (the 90-99%) scrambling just to keep up with inflation and unable to grow any new wealth.

The GOP plan has been immensely successful in making the richer much richer, but it has hurt ordinary Americans severely. It is time to return this country to a sane economic policy that will benefit all Americans. But that can only be done if the Republicans are voted out of power. Since the Republicans refuse to give up on their failed pie-in-the-sky "trickle-down" policy, the American people must give up on the Republican Party.

Grand Finale

Political Cartoon is by Joe Heller in the Green Bay Press-Gazette.

Americans' Opinion On Financial Security

The charts above are from the recent Gallup Poll (conducted between January 2nd and June 27th of 2013). The poll surveyed samples of adults of about 22,000 in size -- and has a margin of error of only 1 point. I think the charts are pretty self-explanatory, so I will just let them speak for themselves.

Congress On Immigration

Political Cartoon is by Stuart Carlson at carlsontoons.com.

Aussie Takes Stage 3 Win In The Tour

Stage 3 of the Tour de France marked the last day of the Tour in Corsica. It was another stage with some medium climbs, but those climbs were not enough to keep the peloton at bat -- and the race finished in a sprint, being won by an Australian rider. Tomorrow the Tour returns to mainland France, with a team trial in Nice. Here are the winners of stage 3 and the overall standings:

STAGE 3 WINNERS
1. Simon Gerrans (Australia) Orica Greenedge
2. Peter Sagan (Slovakia) Cannondale
3. Jose Joaquin Rojas (Spain) Movistar

YELLOW JERSEY (Overall leader)
1. Jan Bakelants (Belgium) Radioshack Leopard
2. Julien Simon (France) Sojasun..........0' 01"
3. Simon Gerrans (Australia) Orica Greenedge..........0' 01"
4. Michal Kwiatkowski (Poland) Omega Pharma-Quick Step..........0' 01"
5. Edvald Boasson Hagen (Norway) Sky Procycling..........0' 01"

GREEN JERSEY (Best Sprinter)
1. Peter Sagan (Slovakia) Cannondale..........74 pts
2. Marcel Kittel (Germany) Argos-Shimano..........57 pts
3. Alexander Kristoff (Norway) Katusha..........48 pts
4. Michal Kwiatkowski (Poland) Omega Pharma-Quick Step..........41 pts
5. Lars Boom (Netherlands) Belkin Pro Cycling..........40 pts

POLKA DOT JERSEY (Best Climber)
1. Pierre Rolland (France) Europcar..........10 pts
2. Simon Clarke (Australia) Orica Greenedge..........5 pts
3. Blel Kadri (France) AG2R La Mondiale..........5 pts
4. Mikel Nieve Iturralde (Spain) Euskaltel-Euskadi..........3 pts

WHITE JERSEY (Best Young Rider)
1. Michal Kwiatkowski (Poland) Omega Pharma-Quick Step
2. Romain Bardet (France) AG2R La Mondiale..........0' 00"
3. Peter Sagan (Slovakia) Cannondale..........0' 00"
4. Nairo Alexander Quintana Rojas (Columbia) Movistar..........0' 00"
5. Tejay Van Garderen (United States) BMC Racing..........0' 00"

TEAM STANDINGS
1. Radioshack Leopard (Luxembourg)
2. BMC Racing (United States)..........0' 01"
3. Vacansoleil-DCM (Netherlands)..........0' 01"
4. Lampre-Merida (Italy)..........0' 01"
5. Orica Greenedge (Australia)..........0' 01"
6. AG2R La Mondiale (France)..........0' 01"

Violence

GOP Attacks Clinton As Being Too Old

It is pretty clear to anyone who keeps up with politics that if Hillary Clinton wants the Democratic nomination for president in 2016, it is hers for the asking. And it is equally clear that her popularity with the American public far exceeds that of any current GOP presidential prospect. That is why the GOP has been attacking Hillary and trying to put a dent in her popularity.

They first tried to do that by making people believe that Clinton was somehow responsible for the tragedy in Benghazi. But that "scandal" turned out to be more of a Republican scandal than a Democratic one, since the congressional Republicans cut millions of dollars for embassy security (even though Secretary of State Clinton had begged them to increase the funding for security).

When that didn't work, they had to come up with something new to attack her on -- and it looks like some of the top Republicans have decided she is too old for the job. Stuart Stevens (top Romney strategist) said it would be like going back in time, Mitch McConnell (minority leader in Senate) called it a "rerun of 'The Golden Girls'", and Karl Rove says "we're at the end of her generation". Even Scott Walker (GOP governor of Wisconsin) got into the act by claiming a younger candidate would be better "if you want to keep thinking about tomorrow".

It doesn't take a genius to decipher what they are saying -- Hillary Clinton is too old to be elected president. Now this could be ageism, the belief that older citizens are somehow less qualified than others, but I doubt it (since many of them are as old as she is). It could also be sexism, the idea that men (even older men) are better qualified than women, and there is probably some of that (since the Republicans seem determined to keep women in a second-class citizenship status). After all, Ronald Reagan was the same age when he ran for president as Hillary will be in 2016 (69 years old) -- and they certainly didn't think he was too old!

But I think the main reason they are trying to float the "too old" argument is they are scared crapless at the thought of a Hillary Clinton candidacy. They know they would have little to no chance of defeating her in a fair election (which is also why they are celebrating the gutting of the Voting Rights Act, and now quickly acting to restrict as many people as possible from being able to vote).

In short, the Republicans see their path to victory in future elections lies in demagoguery and cheating -- since they refuse to change their policies to appeal to a majority of American voters. And Hillary could probably even win in spite of those odious GOP efforts.

Voting Rights

Political Cartoon is by Nick Anderson in the Houston Chronicle.

Congressional Inaction Means Student Interest Rates For College Double Today

For months now, Congress has known that if they do nothing the interest rate for college student loans will double on July 1st (from 3.4% to 6.8%), and yet that is exactly what they have done -- NOTHING! And their inaction will be disastrous for students trying to get an education and better their lives.

There is still an argument going on in Congress, and some are trying to get an emergency measure passed that will extend the current rate for another year -- giving Congress more time to come up with a longer-range solution. Personally, I think that is inadequate. The fact is that college is being priced out of the range of poor and working class students, and even many in the middle class -- and that is the real problem, not the interest rate for borrowing to get an education.

The costs of a college education has ballooned in recent years -- rising much faster than the Consumer Price Index (the official inflation rate). This is due to the policies of the Republican Party, who have decided that education is not a national priority -- but a product that should be sold at the highest price the market will bear. They have done this by cutting both national and state funding for education, deregulating tuition at state-supported schools, keeping the amount of government grants too low, and raising the interest rate of student loans.

The upshot of this insane higher education policy is that a college education has been made much harder to get for most Americans. Students now must either saddle themselves with an incredible amount of debt to go to college, or decide that they cannot afford a college education -- and the raising of the loan interest rates will just make that debt even larger, and convince even more students that college is out of reach for them. Note in the chart above that about 75% of the student debt is held by students coming from families in the bottom 50% of wage earners (and as we know from census reports, most of these people live on wages within 150% of the poverty level). The middle class (the next 25%) holds another 15% of the student debt.

Congress is taking a very short-sighted view on education, by worrying about a few dollars in interest rates rather than how to enhance the ability of Americans to get a college education (and graduate degrees for those who want them). Giving more students the opportunity to get a college education will help this nation (and its economy) far more than making money on interest rates. Educated students are in better shape to provide the innovation and research capability to keep this nation moving -- and those with an education will earn more (and spend more in the economy), and will pay more in taxes.

If Congress was smart they would be giving students who qualify for college free tuition, and give colleges enough support to keep other costs very low. I know right-wingers will claim this is something that cannot be afforded by the government, but the truth is that it would be cost-effective. The increase in government revenue due to the higher taxes paid by educated Americans would be greater than the cost of educating them. Other developed countries know this, and substantially subsidize college educations for their residents.

What is wrong with our own government? Why can't they see that simple fact? Could it be that the Republicans, who still control what can happen in Congress, care only about the wealthiest Americans (and corporations)? I believe so. They want only to keep taxes for the wealthy very low -- regardless of what that does to the rest of America. This is just one more reason (among many) why we must vote the GOP out of power in 2014.

DOMA Downfall

Political Cartoon is by Daryl Cagle at caglecartoons.com.

Marijuana - A Cure For Aggressive Cancers?

By now, it should be obvious to anyone paying attention that the United States government has been lying to us about marijuana -- and those decades of lies are finally being exposed. They told us marijuana was a dangerous drug. We now know it is not dangerous at all. No one has ever died from an "overdose" of marijuana. Marijuana is much safer than any legal drug -- like tobacco and alcohol, and even the supposedly "safe" over-the-counter drugs like aspirin, cold remedies, and myriad others.

They told us marijuana was a "gateway" drug, and would lead users to to the use of harder and much more dangerous drugs. This has also been exposed as a lie. What has led some people to graduate from marijuana to other drugs are the government lies. After realizing that the government has been lying about the effects of marijuana, some are convinced that they were probably lying about other drugs as well. But there is nothing in marijuana (or about marijuana) that would make people want to use any other drug.

Then they tried to tell us that marijuana is dangerous because it's users are incapacitated like alcohol users and are dangerous to other people when driving. Another lie! Numerous studies have shown that drivers on marijuana are no more dangerous than drivers who have used no drug at all.

But perhaps the most egregious lie the government has told us is that marijuana has no medical value. The truth is that we know the drug has been used to treat many medical ailments for centuries, and the list of medical uses for marijuana continues to grow. Now researchers at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco have evidence that marijuana may be a very effective treatment for cancer -- and not just any cancer, but the most aggressive types of cancer, like breast cancer. Here is how The Huffington Post puts it in an article from September of 2012:

A pair of scientists at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco has found that a compound derived from marijuana could stop metastasis in many kinds of aggressive cancer, potentially altering the fatality of the disease forever.

"It took us about 20 years of research to figure this out, but we are very excited," saidPierre Desprez, one of the scientists behind the discovery, to The Huffington Post. "We want to get started with trials as soon as possible."

The Daily Beast first reported on the finding, which has already undergone both laboratory and animal testing, and is awaiting permission for clinical trials in humans.

Desprez, a molecular biologist, spent decades studying ID-1, the gene that causes cancer to spread. Meanwhile, fellow researcher Sean McAllister was studying the effects of Cannabidiol, or CBD, a non-toxic, non-psychoactive chemical compound found in the cannabis plant. Finally, the pair collaborated, combining CBD and cells containing high levels of ID-1 in a petri dish.

"What we found was that his Cannabidiol could essentially 'turn off' the ID-1," Desprez told HuffPost. The cells stopped spreading and returned to normal.

"We likely would not have found this on our own," he added. "That's why collaboration is so essential to scientific discovery."

Desprez and McAllister first published a paper about the finding in 2007. Since then, their team has found that CBD works both in the lab and in animals. And now, they've found even more good news.

"We started by researching breast cancer," said Desprez. "But now we've found that Cannabidiol works with many kinds of aggressive cancers--brain, prostate--any kind in which these high levels of ID-1 are present."

Catching Snowden

Political Cartoon is by Steve Sack in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.

Belgian Rider Takes Tour's Stage 2 Victory

Stage 2 of the Tour de France demanded some climbing ability from the riders. It was one of the earliest mountain stages I can remember, since normally the mountain stages don't come until a week or two into the race. But it didn't contain the really tough climbs (the category 1 or unrated climbs) so only the weakest climbers were punished, and over 90 riders were able to finish within a second of the winner. Here are the top three stage 2 finishers, and the current standing after two stages:

STAGE 2 TOP FINISHERS
1. Jan Bakelants (Belgium) Radioshack Leopard
2. Peter Sagan (Italy) Cannondale
3. Michal Kwiatkowski (Poland) Omega Pharma-Quick Step

YELLOW JERSEY (Overall Leaders)
1. Jan Bakelants (Belgium) Radioshack Leopard
2. David Millar (Great Britain) Garmin-Sharp...........0' 01"
3. Julien Simon (France) Sojasun..........0' 01"
4. Daryl Impey (South Africa) Orica Greenedge..........0' 01'
5. Edvald Boasson Hagen (Norway) Sky Procycling..........0' 01"

GREEN JERSEY (Best Sprinter)
1. Marcel Kittel (Germany) Argos-Shimano..........47 pts
2. Peter Sagan (Slovakia) Cannondale..........43 pts
3. Alexander Kristoff (Norway) Katusha..........41 pts
4. Lars Boom (Netherlands) Belkin Pro Cycling..........40 pts
5. Danny Van Poppel (Netherlands) Vacansoleil-DCM..........39 pts

POLKA DOT JERSEY (Best Climber)
1. Pierre Rolland (France) Europcar..........5 pts
2. Blel Kadri (France) AG2R La Mondiale..........5 pts
3. Cyril Gautier (France) Europcar..........2 pts
4. Lars Boom (Netherlands) Belkin Pro Cycling..........2 pts
5. Brice Feillu (France) Sojasun..........2 pts

WHITE JERSEY (Best Young Rider)
1. Michal Kwiatkowski (Poland) Omega Pharma-Quick Step
2. Romain Bardet (France) AG2R La Mondiale..........0' 00"
3. Nairo Alexander Quintana Rojas (Columbia) Movistar..........0' 00"
4. Jon Izaguirre Insausti (Spain) Euskaltel-Euskadi..........0' 00"
5. Rudy Molard (France) Cofidis Solutions Credit..........0' 00"

TEAM STANDINGS
1. Radioshack Leopard (Luxenbourg)
2. Vacansoleil-DCM (Netherlands)..........0' 01"
3. Orica Greenedge (Australia)..........0' 01"
4. Lampre Merida (Italy)..........0' 01"
5. BMC Racing (United States)..........0' 01"