GOP and right wing control gun? Never.

As the country digested the school shooting in good ole red state Georgia, all the right-wing/Republicans could offer were “thoughts and prayers.” JD Vance, the GOP’s vice presidential candidate, said these shootings are a “fact of life.” Now we’ve moved on with dissecting the Harris-Trump debate. But in the shadow of the 9/11 remembrance, CNN is reporting that the shooter’s mother has written an open letter apologizing and saying her son isn’t a “monster.” That’s irrelevant. He had access to a weapon of war and we need to understand that the Republicans and the radical right will never divest themselves from the NRA or tolerate any restrictions on guns. Why?Here’s the brutal truth. They want their allies to be armed and ready to use against those of us who disagree with the deconstruction of our American democracy. We haven’t heard Thomas Jefferson’s quote in a while, but the right-wing has used it, especially when the Tea Party was more visible.

“The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants,” Jefferson wrote to William Stephens Smith, the son-in-law of John Adams, on November 13, 1787.

In other words, the radical right is lusting for a violent dystopian future. We see this penchant for violence elsewhere. For example, look at the situation with death row inmate Robert Roberson, who faces execution based on junk science. The Intercept reported on this Sept. 9. I am guessing that Texas Fuhrer Greg Abbott will not stop this killing. He’s sending a message, subtle though it may be: The right wing will show no mercy or tolerance for those with whom it disagrees. It’s a reflection of the Jim Crow era when the preponderance of executions in the southern states were people of color, specifically Black people. The death penalty was as much of a tool of oppression then as are gerrymandering and voter suppression today.

If I had a solution to this situation, I would certainly suggest it. But I don’t. Get out the vote? Sure. Hope that law enforcement and the U.S. military will stay loyal to the Constitution? I can hope. But I am afraid we're in for a hot civil war.

Can we fix broken capitalism?

The Washington Post reported on Sept. 4 that Boeing’s ill-fated Starliner capsule will returned to Earth Sept. 6 without its two-person crew. The formerly respected aerospace and airplane manufacturer and NASA have agreed that mechanical issues made a crewed return unsafe, but Boeing has objected to describing the return of the crew as “stranded.” The fact is that an eight-day mission has stretched for months and the word is perfectly appropriate.

Boeing’s PR folks are clearly in bunker mode because the firm issued a statement instead of answering questions, according to the Washington Post. That’s not surprising given the company’s recent history. For those needing a reminder, two new Boeing 737 MAX aircraft crashed due to software and other failures claiming 346 lives. More recently, an Alaska Airlines 737 lost a door plug forcing an emergency descent and return to the airport. And, two Boeing whistleblowers died a few months ago. The other reminder about Boeing is less spectacular and thus may have flown below much of the public’s radar. The firm moved its Seattle-area headquarters to Chicago in 2001 and then, in 2022, to Arlington, Va. Many industry watchers and others noted the moves from changed the company from an engineering firm to a bean counter firm.

But this isn’t just about Boeing. It’s about how the right-wing has destroyed the best parts of capitalism. It’s about James Buchanan and the Koch brothers and the other “titans” of industry who created a deeper and broader problem for the United States and world economy.

I’ve written exhaustively about the source of the 20th Century origins of this movement by citing the brilliant work of award-winning Duke University historian Nancy MacLean’s 2017 “Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right's Stealth Plan for America.” Buchanan laid the plans for the unfettered libertarian corporations in the world, especially in the United States where the guardrails are weak.

But another book chronicled the who and how changing the stakeholders in companies from employees and customers to investors and “Wall Street,” they have reshaped the economy to favor the wealthy.  

David Gelles’ work, “The Man Who Broke Capitalism:How Jack Welch Gutted the Heartland and Crushed the Soul of Corporate America — and How to Undo His Legacy” describes how Welch changed G.E. from a customer-product-employee oriented company to a firm focused on stock price. Welch’s reign of terror began in 1981 and spawned the “greed is good” 1980s and 1990s.

“But Welch’s achievements didn’t stem from some greater intelligence or business prowess. Rather, they were the result of a sustained effort to push GE’s stock price ever higher, often at the expense of workers, consumers, and innovation,” writes the Simon & Schuster summary of Gelles’ work. “In this captivating, revelatory book, David Gelles argues that Welch single-highhandedly ushered in a new, cutthroat era of American capitalism that continues to this day.”

Gelles cites Boeing, Home Depot, Kraft Heinz, and others; so, Boeing is just the most recent poster child for abomination. It’s been going on for years. Remember Erin Brockovich? And how about Microsoft’s environmental rape by setting hardware requirements for Windows 11 that will obsolete an estimated 240 million non-conforming, vomiting them into landfills?

As recently as Sept. 1, the New York Times broke a story about Acadia Healthcare’s illicit hold policies for psychiatric patients. That story also mentioned the Justice Department’s $122 million fine in 2020 of Universal Health Services, Inc. and Turning Point Care Center, LLC. The DOJ release of July 10, 2020 stated the fine was “to resolve alleged violations of the False Claims Act for billing for medically unnecessary inpatient behavioral health services, failing to provide adequate and appropriate services, and paying illegal inducements to federal healthcare beneficiaries … .:”

These examples are the proverbial tip of the iceberg. Also on Sept. 4, Kim Komando’s tech newsletter exposed the Atlanta-based Cox Media Group for selling information from its product that taps smartphones and sells the information for advertising.

“Their Active Listening software can tap into private conversations through your smartphone’s microphone. It uses AI to capture and analyze data from a convo, which it then combines with behavioral data to create ultra-targeted ads,” Komando wrote. “Perhaps most shockingly of all, they list Facebook, Google and Amazon as partners. Now, they didn't say for sure the Big Tech giants use Active Listening; it’s more implied — and now those companies are scrambling.”

And lest we forget, take note of Tesla, the most prominent strain of corporate genital herpes, Elon Musk, infecting our world.

“When a Tesla is in Sentry mode, its onboard cameras capture what’s happening around the vehicle when there’s sound or movement detected. Police know that to get the footage, they need access to the USB drive in the glove box. If the owner is MIA, cops get a search warrant and tow the EV into evidence,” Komando wrote. That also raises the question that a Fourth Amendment violation may be at play. In addition, Musk’s Space X is contaminating Texas, without the state’s corporately captive government doing nothing. Of course, Texas own Führer, Greg Abbott, promotes this as he pledges his allegiance to the world oligarchy.

Gelles was optimistic that firms are now rejecting “Welchism,” citing companies like Patagonia and Unilever among others. But given the revelation about the Cox Media Group and BigTech, I am far from convinced the pendulum will swing back the other way.

It will come down to politics, won’t it? Add the above thoughts on November 5, 2024.