Just in case
5 years have gone by since my last post — honestly I had forgotten my password and fallen out of the habit of writing. I hope that folks find these suggestions helpful. Today I went on a Facebook comment rampage due to Fox News accusing Obama of faking his crying when talking about the newtown massacre. I couldn’t help myself. Those people have been lying since the inception of the network and considering that Ailes was a Nixon Operative and Cheney was a Nixon operative they probably came up with the idea of 9/11 over a poker-game. I could not hold myself back and publicly debunked 9/11 with irrefutable evidence (the gold heist of the metals beneath the WTC towers, shorting of airline stock). I couldn’t help myself from keeping the truth from the people that constantly deceive and claim to broadcast news. Hopefully this works out for me – “fingers crossed”.
Anyhoo – I have back pain and splotching on my legs and I’ve smoked for 10 years and lived in a plastics factory. Maybe the back pain is scholelois but it could be a tumor pinching a nerve. Anyways I’m (MILES DISNEY) waiting for health insurance so that I can see a Doctor and find out for sure. Either way — I’ve been suicidal for years because of a terrible childhood and bipolar so that kept me smoking. And I figured we would cure cancer before I would get it — we’ll see. I also have knowingly avoided treatment for TB because pharmaceutical companies would rather make another Viagra than cure it and all the other strains are resistant – so go check your PPD suckers. I picked up TB when I was in Laos and Thailand in the best trip of my life when I was 18.
I really don’t know whats up with society. I the CIA going to come after someone who shows that the CIA committed treason? I don’t know – Hopefully not — theoretically they are patriotic and have witnessed the carnage that they continually bestow upon humanity by setting up conficts for which our war machine can “solve”.
But that’s not why I’m writing this. There’s a decent chance I’m not going to be around forever so I wanted to compile my digital feats in one place for the future.
Here’s the anthem to occupy wall street http://observer.com/2011/10/mc-moneypenneys-amazing-occupy-rap-tap-dat-aet-video/
Just so you all know – the Tobin Tax on the stock market was something that I came up independently and as you read below relentlessly fought for FOR YEARS before an idea that benefits everyone (except hedge fund managers) became law. That’s how corrupt our system was. I faxed every congressman letters. Never a letter back. Never a phone call. Never a thank you. WHAT THE HELL???? Eventually Barnaby Frank told me it wasn’t a good idea. Whatever Barney.
Here’s the second anthem to occupy wall street https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AzRu4g6E2XQ
Here’s a link to my youtube channel which features a number of interesting projects for which I will not got into great detail. I love my public access show “Amherst Bandstand’
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzRwXccXA4LasxkI8DZkmDQ
I want to point out to you that despite my accomplishments no one will interview me for a full time job.
Here’s a link to my bandcamp – notice the “buy now” tab next to the songs which I allow you to hear for free. To date in total — despite 2 anthems to Occupy and 3 anthems to Bernie sanders – and a fox news anthem – and a college debt anthem —- I have received $0.74 in payment for my work.
Google runs ads on my youtube videos and has never given me a dime. Copyright schmockyright…. this was fair use but it was parody and media manipulation which re-engineered the whole meaning of the songs. Facebook has never paid me to license my photos or to sell my data. This is bullshit… the internet is a freeloading society ever since napster and some folks should be moved by the goodness of their heart to buy instead of steal. I’m surprised that record labels gutted a&r because in another era I would have been found and made famous. Or SOMEONE WOULD HAVE CONTACTED ME BY FACEBOOK OR BY PHONE OR BY ANYTHING.
I’ve been rooting for Bernie since 2010 when he filibustered in the midst of the bush tax cut blackmail. You’ll see a post below.
http://www.examiner.com/article/mc-moneypenny-is-bernin-down-da-haus-for-senator-sanders
I also made this really funny Johnny Cash video for Bernie https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVlEQn-UhIA
ah yes my bandcamp mcmoneypenny.bandcamp.com
In case anyone can work out how to get me some publishing royalties and I perish before getting my Elvis jet I would like a foundation called the “innocence foundation” which would do the work of the public defenders who are absolutely overworked to the point of absurdity. 7 minutes per case to defend a client. If Sheriff’s didn’t own jails we wouldn’t have so many prisoners. The system is sick and if I die I will consider it an improvement to the disgusting monster that the United States of America has become.
Bernie Madoff and Miles Disney just show that what you name your kids matter and that your kids will hopefully honor the quest of their parents. My mother named me “Miles” because she had a coworker who had son named “Miles”. She studied ancient greek at UPENN and then claimed that it was “Militas” a soldier for peace. Indeed tried to honor her legacy. Still a name like Miles Disney (4th cousins to Walt but my side has Ian Mackaye and congressmen — but seriously if its just a slipped disk put me in charge of Disney and I will be the King of the Magical Kingdom)
One of the frustrations of being extremely internet famous but not regular famous is that people accuse me of being crazy when I say that I’m famous. Can you believe this shit? I’m a poor Disney. I’m famous and poor and my parents living room despite a college degree and it seems that I’m an effective communicator.
I want to thank a few people for guiding me along the path. First and foremost Detlev Koepke who in many ways was a modern day “seer”. Detlev recently passed away but for most of his career he was a community college professor that would grade hard a bunker hill community college. I believe Robin Williams character may have been based on him in Good Will Hunting. Anyhow Detlev is good friends with my father – Loren and was effectively my adoptive father. Detlev and I would have long conversations and he revealed to me much of the learnings he sought in the quest to truly understand Jesus. He has written 2 books “Jesus the Mythical Philosopher” and “Gospel of Thomas” but he died before getting a publishing deal.
Detlev and I had long conversations and he kept teaching me things about Jesus that I would not otherwise know. He had studied the man extensively at Harvard Divinity School but ended up teaching philosophy and history at community college. He also was a victim of the system. He was an ad-junct professor and died too soon because he didn’t have access to diagnostic and preventative care. Prostate cancer despite keeping a meticulous diet. He was given a respectable salary and benefits because he left Columbia with a Masters instead of a PHD because of the extreme levels of chest thumping in the ivory tower. The administrators of Bunker Hill Community College (a cabal of lesbians not that there’s anything wrong with that) kept hiring more of their friends at high salaries while the professors got gypped. How ironic the plight of the Marxist professor — the capitalist overlords in indeed in the university they just happen to say dean. How do these people blow to get their prestigious jobs? Such bullshit — I’ve only dealt with rampant incompetence when I was in college especially at UMass Amherst. Hopefully its better there but professors had to complain that their offices had Asbestos in them.
Ok back to topic – A message to anyone who might be reading this – WAKE UP, STICK UP FOR YOURSELF, STICK UP FOR WHAT YOU BELIEVE IN, AND ACTUALLY LIVE BY YOUR RELIGIOUS VALUES. I feel like folks think that I’m Jesus – I’m not Jesus I’m just a shmoe who happens to know what Christian values are mostly from the 10 commandments. But I don’t also waste ALL of my time talking about Jesus. Do something aside from thumping the damn bible – it can a fun and engaging thing to try new things or even new religions out. Why not John Lennon did it.
My upbringing was officially Unitarian Universalist and I attended a multi-cultural Suffee school so I was exposed to various belief systems at an early age and kept that tolerance with me.
On my Facebook account I’ve detailed how to get free energy (magnetic resonant coils at resonant frequency of earth (8hz) is my theory. I’ve been trying to solve all of the worlds problems all the time — look through it its Miles Dee and I’m listed as Providence. Folks need to get into the habit of using the powers of deductive reasoning. Part of the reasons that I have been able to learn so much is that when someone says “I’m a mechanical engineer” that means you can ask them about how to build machines. If someone says “I’m an onocogyst” that means they know something about Cancer I’ve made suggestions to these people as I meet them- I’ve been looking stuff on Google for most of my adult life in a fanatic quest to satisfy my curiosity and that is why the Internet is great. I bet our parents would have never imagined the influence the information superhighway has had and how it is changing everything (except gas drilling and a sense of community). We need bookstores, record stores, cafes, movie theatres, community theatres, arcades because they are fun and because they bring folks together. People need to learn how to stop staring into their damn smartphones and learn to relate to one another. And don’t be afraid to talk to strangers in a friendly environment.
Also if you want to make change — figure out who is in charge of what and make helpful suggestions. And sarcasm – a powerful disarming tool.
15 Ways to Restore and Strenthen America
Americans for a solvent America
Miles Disney, Executive Director
324 Van Brunt Street
Brooklyn, NY 11231
(617) 938-9995
miles.disney@gmail.com
15 Ways to Restore and Strengthen America!
1. Teach financial literacy to all our citizens. In a capitalist society understanding the nature of capital is as important as fishing is to a fishing-based society. By teaching financial literacy as part of the education curriculum our young people would be better prepared to understand and capitalize on the opportunities available in our free-enterprise system. A better understanding of our economic system would likely lead to more small businesses, more innovation, a higher rate of small-business success (because inexperience would be less likely to cause failure) and higher employment. Much of the poor and middle class do not understand the fundamental techniques to build wealth, by investing wisely there would be additional capital for good businesses and more saving for the future. It shouldn’t be totally mystifying to the average American how to run a 7-11. Why don’t more Americans own these sort of franchises? In addition, more people would be more capable to be better, more informed leaders of large businesses. With education perhaps we can all understand, appreciate, and capitalize the benefits of a free-market system.
2. Lemons to Lemonade – Perhaps the throngs of skilled un/underemployed professionals could help teach our children via afterschool tutoring programs. Perhaps unemployment benefits could be tied to a commitment from unemployment recipients to train the young or fellow unemployed. By expanding collective knowledge our citizenry would better informed and better prepared to meet the needs of an increasingly demanding job market. Government unemployment office could have an informal “skill database” to facilitate a cross-pollination of skill-sets. This would be an innovative diversion as the economic storm rages on. In addition, these forms of simple helpfulness would likely reinstate despondent unemployed folks with a sense of self-worth. It’s a win-win!
3. Debate and seriously consider the merits of Congressman DeFazio’s Let Wall Street Pay for the Restoration of Main Street Act. The bill proposes a meager .25% sales tax on all stock and bond transactions. The bill is brilliant authored to dis-incentivize unproductive churning thereby encouraging investment. As an added benefit the bill would generate an estimated $150,000,000,000 per year to offset spending. If the U.S. were to attempt to work in tandem with other capitalist nations in implementing the tax there would be little risk of capital flight. Passing this bill would discourage some of the excessive speculative trading and create a benign new source of revenue for the Treasury Department.
4. Corporations that dodge all tax obligations should have their charter revoked. To do business in America you must pay taxes to the country. America spends many billions subsidizing agriculture, funding medical/pharmaceutical research, awarding military contracts, and protecting our interests overseas. It is only right that the recipients of countless government benefits pay into the system.
5. Close the web of loopholes that allow Corporations to avoid paying taxes. 1 in 5 companies avoid corporate taxation all together. By closing the sea of loopholes, deductions, and credits, we could generate billions more in revenue.
6. Allow Corporations to pay their tax obligations through stock issuance. American companies have proved their cunning in evading taxation time and time again. Perhaps these same corporations would feel less resentful towards taxation cutting into the bottom line if they were allowed to issue stock as payment. The advantages are that dilution would be the only side-effect to a new form of clever taxation. The American government could sell the stock into the market over time (so as to not upset the markets) to monetize the revenue. While companies may see slight declines in stock prices as the government divests, they would experience higher earnings by not paying taxes before distributing profits. It’s a win-win.
7. Reduce military spending drastically. Almost any resident of a country other than ours will consider our military budget frightening, unbalanced, and short-sighted. $700,000,000,000/year not including CIA, NSA and Homeland Security funding is truly daunting. In considering ways to reduce an annual deficit of $1,300,000,000,000 and a servicing a debt of $13,000,000,000,000 the Military should be on the table. Some of the most egregious waste are the bases in Okinawa and Germany which are WW2 relics and completely unnecessary in the current geo-political environment. We should also conduct audits between the cost of military equipment to the government and the cost to manufacture. Anecdotally I heard that a new helicopter blade for an Apache helicopter is $2,000,000. How much can it possibly cost to manufacture a helicopter blade? $10,000. In austere times, profiteers must not be chosen over the common good. These sort of extortion must go onto the chopping block.
8. Make community college free and expand the capacity. Community colleges are the most direct means for workers to obtain the skills that will make them competitive in today’s economy. Perhaps marginal increases in employer taxation would offset this cost. Many companies would likely be willing to pay for well-trained workers that would rapidly improve their competitiveness.
9. Offer contacts to Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Northrop Grumman, General Electric, and Boeing to build and install windmills, solar sterling, Solar two plants on favorable government lands and defunct military bases. Contact Conoco-Phillips to drill geothermal wells for municipal buildings. There is no reason why our defense contractors are unable to protect our energy interests by expanding our inventory of renewable instead of protecting our access to Crude oil supply abroad. Much of the reason the military-industrial complex is so entrenched is the vast number of jobs they create making unnecessary military equipment. Those same companies clearly possess the engineers and workers to build solutions for a world beyond petroleum. Why not use our existing.
10. Offer low interest loans to implement many of the burgeoning innovation which reduce consumption of resources. A host of startups have addressed a number of the inefficiencies in our consumption of energy to power homes and businesses. One company named Freewatt has developed a residential-cogeneration system in partnership with Honda. The system uses natural gas to power a generator that produces electricity and uses the water-cooling system to feed a forced hot-water heating system; excess heat is also used in the hot-water heating systems. This system in particular has high upfront costs but has a payoff period of about 5 years. By providing the upfront costs and collecting the savings over time as homeowners with the system save money in electricity and natural over time. By promoting this technology we could create economies of scale and make the technology cheaper for all households. Were these technologies to experience widespread adoption we could see vast reductions in energy usage. Other companies that should be supported include Vegawatt which provides a co-gen system for institutions like prisons, colleges, and schools that runs on waste-vegetable oil. The system reduces waste in both inputs and outputs and should be embraced en-masse.
11. Expand the Small Business Association and offer government micro-finance. Based on my experience with the Small Business Administration and SCORE I can tell you that starting a business requires a significant amount of upfront capital no matter the merits of the idea. The SBA offers loan guarantees to established businesses, but not upfront capital. By creating additional avenues for upfront capital for aspiring entrepreneurs we could enable many budding entrepreneurs to realize their vision. It would be wise to couple the micro-finance efforts with a much more comprehensive educational program which could take place at SBA or at community colleges.
12. Nationalize the Federal Reserve. The Federal Reserve is a privately held corporation with the power to print money from nothing. When any other private enterprise prints money it is called counterfeiting. With even the slightest research into the Federal Reserve Act of 1913, its drafting, and the passage it will be obvious how corrupt the central banking system is. Currently the Treasury department exchanges Treasury bonds for cash from the Federal Reserve to spend. The Federal Reserve prints the money FROM NOTHING in exchange for those Treasury Department. Thus, the Federal Reserve COLLECTS INTEREST from money it printed FROM NOTHING. Because this ridiculous system has been in place since 1913, nearly ½ of the outstanding Treasury Bonds are owned by the Federal Reserve. If we were to correct this abhorrent arrangement the national debt would immediately be cut in half. We would only owe $6,000,000,000,000 instead of $13,000,000,000,000!
13. Subsidize railroads for transport and transportation. In terms of energy RAIL is the most efficient mode of transport, airlines the worst, and automotive the second worst. The government regularly subsidizes Airports (and bailouts for airlines) while regularly squashing railroad transportation. Reductions in airline subsidization would make railroad transportation more competitive. Why do we subsidize the most energy-efficient modes of transportation while actively destroying the most efficient. We, as Americans, and citizens of the world must recognize that oil wells will eventually run dry. The faster we prepare for it, the longer the crude supplies will last. Fixing this will buy time for technology to develop viable solutions for a post-petroleum society.
14. Offer free airtime to all political candidates on the PUBLIC airwaves. One of the reasons politics has become so saturated with special-interest money is a direct result of the high-cost of seeking office. The majority of political spending is on television and radio advertisements; as the airwaves are PUBLIC PROPERTY licensed to operators, it is only appropriate that they should be offered for free to candidates seeking office. Media organization who refuse to comply should face automatic revocation of their broadcasting license.
15. Ease the process to gain a radio or television broadcast license. The only way to create a vibrant Democracy is through a vibrant marketplace of ideas. These ideas are transmitted through the media to the voters. The only way to ensure that Americans can become aware of ground-breaking ideas is to ensure that there is a variety of sources for their information. Faced with a 5-company oligopoly for nearly ALL of the information Americans are regularly exposed to, a relaxation in the process to start a radio station (and perhaps forced divestment of Citadel and Infinity groups) is the only way to re-empower our fragile society.
One Sane Man in the Government Gone Mad
The only sane man in a government gone mad
Bernie Sanders’ (I-VT) filibuster yesterday was both historic and inspiring. His impassioned speech provided us with insight into unadulterated Democracy; politics beyond partisanship. Both parties are married to and marred with corporate money. The Obama-Republican compromise exposes that the “deficit hawks” as spin-doctors and outright liars.
Sanders articulated how the Republicans are only concerned with the desires of the super-rich. The daunting reality is that the commonly referenced middle-class is fading to a myth. The new America contains a class of pampered neo-aristocrats and hungry, shivering serfs. Bernie told us like it is—the country and the American people are in crisis and now is not the time to write the super-rich a fat check. Sanders the only member of congress to mention the elephant in the room: Bush-era policies have bankrupted our poor, our middle class and our country; We as individuals, and as a nation are looking bankruptcy in the face.
Sanders appeared livid, and bless him for it. We (the 99.7%) should all be livid. Corporate greed, hubris, and mass complacency have brought us to our current disaster; our solution to widespread suffering: tax cuts for the rich. Finally, a public figure diagnosing bottomless Republican greed! I, for one hope that after this speech wealth redistribution will commonly be perceived necessary tool in maintaining a decent nation. With Sanders’ outspokenness Liberal will be derided no-more. Redistributing income from the super-rich is not socialist; it is in-fact, the only way to construct a livable society. Our only hope is that Democrats listen to Sanders and re-stack the chips towards the citizens and against the globalist plutocrats.
It was refreshing to hear for-once the Truth: for the majority of Americans austerity measures are in place. The non-rich live austere lives attempting to afford food, shelter, heat, medicine and secondary education. How has trickle down economics been accepted as fact when swaths of evidence suggests that enabling the non-rich to buy food and heating-oil would stimulate the economy faster? Sanders proved himself yesterday as the only sane man in a government gone crazy.
As a result of our victory in WW2 and Bretton Woods we were blessed with much of the world’s wealth and a truly global empire. Our collective greed, laziness, pride, and hubris enabled us to accept a policy of transferring the nation’s wealth overseas by exporting our manufacturing, technology, and customer service abroad. While we have done this we import our labor to actually harvest our food, pump our gas, and clean our dishes. Sanders aptly pointed out that bipartisan free-trade policies outsourced the nation’s wealth.
We have attempted to maintain our comfortable existence with credit cards and home-equity loans as middle class families have worked harder than ever to maintain a decent life. The same American individualist spirit which fueled the nation’s innovative spirit and success has led to poor and middle class families blaming themselves for economic hardship. Kudos to Sanders for speaking up! It is nearly impossible to live decently due to rising costs in housing, education, medicine, fuel, and food. Costs keep rising and yet government officials claim there is no inflation. Washington dwells on cloud 9; there is bi-partisian support for common delusion: the 1950s aren’t coming back, at least no here and not now; those times are reserved for countries that produce, like China. Sanders is right! People are going hungry and Washington (particularly Republicans) are out of touch. Both parties spun the debt and deficit as the primary issue in the past election and this compromise proves spin-doctoring on both sides of the aisle.
The bottom line is this: we cannot afford tax cuts for the super rich and we cannot afford a $700,000,000 a year military empire. We must have austerity in the warfare state and (some), austerity in the prison-industrial state, and austerity in the welfare state if our nation is to persist.
A rant on the New York Times website
The sad truth about our current system is how much of a monster corporate capitalism is by its essence. Firms are required by law and corporate bylaws to maximize profits, whatever the costs. If that means bribing politicians to sign onto free trade agreements that will export our manufacturing sector abroad, so be it. As long as quarterly earnings satisfy the analysts on Wall Street. Who cares if it destroys all the wealth of average Americans? Why not paupers of programmers? It is mammon’s will.
Our Corporate system absolves responsibility management’s/politicos misdeeds; with our system everyone gets to plead the nuremberg defense; even the CEOs work for “the shareholders” to “create and deliver value.” Believe it or not Adam Smith would say that the workers actually create value by building goods people buy; worthless white-collar MBA’s don’t create value they simply shuffle paper around while building oligopolies and patting each-other on the back during golf games. After their busy day of “work” they rationalize their extreme opulence with clever MBA jargon. American corporate capitalism is Adam Smith’s vision on crack. Its a bad trip.
The problem we face by thinking quarterly is that we always decimate the our society in pursuit of the quick buck. Skilled or unskilled workers with be automated or outsourced until all that remains is an aristocratic class of MBAs and Hedge Fund gurus and millions of unemployed work-a-day schmoes. I’m sure the MBAs are busying trying to figure out how the richest 2% can possess more than 100% of the nation’s wealth… perhaps by loaning money to workers desperately trying to learn in-demand skills…. that’s so maniacal it just might work! Someday we will realize that in order to PRODUCE and EXPORT you need to have FACTORIES in your country. Intellectual property is all fine and good, but its a lot easier to clandestinely copy a trademark, copyright, or patent than it is to steal an object which dwells in the 3rd dimension. That is one of the reasons actual production is vitally important in keeping our country from going bankrupt.
One thing I can tell you as a recently graduated college attendee is that loading down the youth with a mountain of debt is not the way to build the perfect society. Many of my contemporaries have seen their vision for the American dream wither about 6 months after graduating; how can we be expected to live a decent life while un/underemployed and facing a $100,000+ in loans? Why have we written laws that make those loans almost impossible to remove in bankruptcy court. Thanks America! I think its about time that we should figure out a way to actually export something: our youth. I would give up this lousy social contract in a heartbeat if there were a reasonable way to get, say German, French, Swedish, Danish, Dutch, for Belgian citizenship. These countries aren’t known to feast on their young like mine does. Get me out of here! Why should I have to go down on the Titanic when the machine was made my machinations of corrupt officials one or two generations before mine?
Too bad society doesn’t have a place for a guy like me.
To all the major news networks—- PAY ATTENTION
Dear Newsperson(s),
America has a reputation for having innovative answers to consistent problems; it is from this land that inventors solved many of the woes of humanity. This lands birthed the telephone, the refrigerator, and the Internet and much of our common wealth and success can be attributed to our innovative ideas. It is with this cunning that the people that have cultivated this land have transformed it from a humble continent of woods to the world’s wealthiest nation.
Yet this time is one in which the America faces great challenges. We have regressed from the world’s largest lending nation to the greatest debtor. Millions of jobs have left these shores and migrated southward and eastward. We now have a trade deficit that is larger than the economies many nations; our government operated on borrowed money and borrowed time to keep the country afloat. Yet I have a solution. Place a Tobin Tax on all the equity markets.
The Tobin tax is named after the man who conceived it: Professor (and Nobel Laureate) James Tobin. Professor Tobin proposed to place a very small tax in any instance where currencies were exchanged for one another (for example US Dollars to Euros, Pounds to Yen, Rupees to Pesos, etc.) the idea of placing a small levy would be to discourage excessive speculation on the currencies; speculation—as demonstrated by the meltdown in Southeast Asia in the late 1990s (or our current debacle)—can foil the progress of proper development. Likewise, it was speculation which has led to the muddle the United States has recently found itself in. Much of the turmoil currently surrounding us could have been avoided if everyone hadn’t jumped aboard the housing bubble; mortgage-backed securities provided a way for banks to lend freely without fear of default. Speculation made us drunk on paper money.
Thus I propose the Tobin tax on stock, bonds, options, futures, derivatives, credit-default swaps, commodities, and mortgage-backed securities. With a very small levy, say .1% or less (even .01%), we could raise many billions of dollars (or even trillions) to plug the government’s ballooning deficits. A higher Tobin tax (.5%) could pay down the long term US debt, and pay for things like universal healthcare and a college education for all. I liken the equity markets to the great lakes of money, or perhaps the Colorado River of money, and all we have to do is to place a small dam on those resources to solve our troubles. Trillions and trillions of dollars change hands every day in these markets and were the levy small enough, say .1% or perhaps even .05% it would be incorporated into the cost of doing business. Middle class investors would not even notice the miniscule cost added to investing in their portfolios. Likewise, buy-and-hold investors would not be affected by a very small tax on the cost of buying assets. They instead would be focused on the long-term growth of a company.
The primary individuals who would be affected by a small tax on equities would be speculators, the very people who caused our current crisis. Investment banks and hedge fund managers may grimace at a small tax, but it is exactly them who create chaos in our markets. It is the frequent ebb and flow of large pools of assets, controlled by these few individuals that create much of the current volatility. By placing a Tobin tax on their game, they would have an incentive to be more prudent with the money other people have entrusted to them.
Tap Dat Asset
Yo this one goes out for all those pimps at goldman sachs
Suckas be crooked-rich and that’s a fact
Shit be like madoff; politicans be paid off, American people be the chumps who get played-off, Blankfien get an island while workers get laid-off.
But we can fuck up their game up with a tobin-tax.
For those that don’t know there was a professor named tobin
No-bel lau-re-at, numbers genius is where the glory at.
Saw all the money swishing and the globe an
He thought lets put a little levy on all that money
And governments get revenue like bees get honey.
TAP THAT ASS-ETT
TAP THAT ASS-ETT
Tobin said lets get ourselves a taste of all that currency,
Dollar bills, euros, yen, francs, renmimbi
Speculators gotta pay be they English or Hindi
With little tax they would have to invest
And some of our fiscal needs will be redressed.
YO, TAP THAT ASS-ETT
TAP THAT ASS-ETT
So the idea starts with a tax on the markets
Stock, bond, derivitive, currency, commodity,
Flash crash be because of some speculative executives
Dow jones lost 1000 points cuz hal the trading robot be smoking 3 joints.
TAP THAT ASS-ETT
TAP THAT ASS-ETT
Hedge funds, traders, investment banks, private equity,
throwing round money as if that shit was new years confetti
But a fraction of a tax and then shits not funny
And all they can do is cry into a bit wad of money
But then with the bailiout those pussys be whining
All the time they eating steaks with politicans wining and dining
Motherfuckes don’t wanna pay for the fiscal catastrophy
But taxing the markets, they call it blasphomy?
Uncle Sam; that sucka is mad broke
Cant afford an egg yoke
Adding zeros to the defecits in one broad stoke
At the fed they be printing money, they call it quantative easing
Like a shot of rum that shit be mad pleasing
But they go too far, shits like wiemar,
They printing more bills than the galaxy got stars.
But one way we can put a stop to this
Is to handle this like a democratic populous
Call your congressman or your newspaper columnist.
Another nobel laurate whose seen the light
His name is Krugman on the mic device.
————————
Miles Disney’s Plan To Save America
1. Sales tax on the stock market (NYSE, NASDAQ), the commodities markets (CME), and federal currency trades (Forex). Trillions of dollars that move through the financial markets each day, a rough estimate is 5 trillion. Were the federal government to place a small tax on sales say 1% they balance the budget in 10 days. If the tax were .1% the federal government would have a 1 trillion dollar surplus in 300 days. Please consider this suggestion. Trillions of dollars of additional income would allow for the extension of social security, universal health care, and rebuilding of the national infrastructure. Think of the tax as damming the Colorado River, only instead of water, money. I encourage you to “Tap Dat Asset.”
2. Allow Americans to determine where their income tax goes. Many Americans complain that they do not see how their tax money benefits them. Imagine if when April came around each American calculated their tax burden and then chose exactly which federal bureaus they could give their money to (like year end charities). Popular federal departments (like say Education) would receive the lion-share of government income. Unpopular government bureaus, like say the CIA, NSA, Army would receive little. Americans would decide how their money is spent, not lobbyists or politicians. There would then have to be a general accounting office process for funding under-funded departments, but Americans would allow their tax money to vote.
3. Ease the debt burden on the middle class by enacting federal usury laws. The average credit card interest rate is 30% apr, nearly that of pawn shops. One quick way to save the middle class (and underclass) is to eliminate exploitative lending practices.
4. End the voter disenfranchisement of felons. There are millions of Americans (primarily black males) that have their right to vote revoked because of felony convictions. Many southern states including Florida, Maryland, Mississippi, and Alabama have denied felons the right to vote thereby altering the demographics in the state elections. I liken this process to a modern day grandfather clause and the practice should be declared unconstitutional.
5. Grant government money to develop electric cars with removable batteries and the development of charging stations. One of the major hurdles to the development of electrical transport is a limited driving range of less than 300 miles. Were a new technology (not really new) to allow electric batteries to be removed by forklift and replaced with charged batteries we could immediately begin towards electric transportation.
6. End war profiteering by banning cost-plus contracts. Raytheon, KBR, and Bechtel have made billions by inflating the cost of government projects because of financial incentives. By penalizing over-budget projects, the government could save American tax money and spend it on American problems.
7. Invest in proactive programs to ultimately reduce crime and poverty such as early childhood education, after school programs, and teen mentorship programs. Also gun buy-back programs supplying consumer electronics. Instead of teens having to kill one another for coveted items (like ipods or nikes) teens could turn in unwanted guns for the items themselves. Think of the hundreds of millions saved by not having to incarcerate thousands of youths.
8. Free airtime on public airwaves for individuals seeking public office. One of the primary reasons that Washington has grown so corrupt is that politicians need to solicit millions of dollars to advertise to their constituents. By providing free airtime on broadcast radio and television (licensed to private interests through the FCC) price would not be a hurdle for competent candidates to be elected.
9. Revoke the charter of any company incorporating in off-shore tax shelters. If any company is too good to follow the American tax code, they should also be too good for American consumer’s money.
10. Government contracts to build solar farms. Why can’t the government invest in solar farms and sell electricity as a utility? There are thousands of square miles of government land in the SW (like Utah, Nevada) that would be prime real estate for generating electricity. Also, consider Sterling engines and mirrors are a cheaper way to make electricity than from Photo-voltaic panels.
11. Debt forgiveness for all college loans, and free college for all Americans. I have no idea how you could pay for this, but as I am in college I thought I would mention it wishfully. Regardless, a college degree increases an individuals lifetime earnings by more than $1,000,000 so measures to allow more Americans to become educated also means fewer Americans below the poverty line.
Just for kicks: here’s a link to my reel: http://vimeo.com/15415506
Thoughts on Frontline’s College Inc.
I just watched a PBS Frontline broadcast about the growth of for-profit Wall Street backed education and felt that it was dead on, but overlooked the “for-profit” aspects of conventional non-profit schools.
About a month ago I attended a film-judging for UMass Amherst–my current college, and it was fascinating hearing the amount of group-think which went into the “branding” of UMass. Films which may have been slightly amateurish were voted down despite easy changes. In addition everything which was considered was harshly communicated about being on-brand of off-brand etc. The experience gave me a very real insight about how much colleges are run like businesses; down to the t. For some reason the whole experience infuriated me, particularly that the judges had promised 3 prizes and eventually only rewarded 2. It seemed like a micro-rendition of the Enron philosophy, only instead in a state-run institution. Perhaps I shouldn’t have assumed that the college could be above all that.
The current trend of ever-rising tuition and ever rising salaries for college administrators is simply another symptom of the disease. One of the factors driving up the costs of college is the fewer and more competitive jobs and therefore the need for college skills to acquire gainful employment. That said, the need for college has driven a demand for nearly every American. What I resent is when that demand, colleges being flooded with applicants and then for whatever reason coming to the conclusion that the demand exceeds the supply and therefore tuition must rise.
The problem I’ve detected in the system is that the MBA mentality has been applied to schools; it likely has always been there. Still, there is something chilling about educators looking hard and cold at the numbers and thinking about enrollment figures rather than an excellent college experience for students.
I can only imagine what that means for the average student at a for-profit institution. If the Wall-Street money backing the tuition leads to better equipment and faculty, perhaps the institutions could serve the public interest. However, because they are pro-profit, the likelihood of many need-based grants by the school would be next-to-none. In short, the broadcast left me on the fence on the issue. Most likely the for-profit schools will ruin education and use people, but there is a slimmer of hope that individuals will be able to get a better education than the ones they have been barred from at typical college operations.
One Brilliant Idea To Save America (been thought of, but it don’t hurt to say it again)
One Brilliant Idea To Save America
America has a reputation for having innovative answers to consistent problems; it is from this land that inventors solved many of the woes of humanity. This lands birthed the telephone, the refrigerator, and the Internet and much of our common wealth and success can be attributed to our innovative ideas. It is with this cunning that the people that have cultivated this land have transformed it from a humble continent of woods to the world’s wealthiest nation.
Yet this time is one in which the America faces great challenges. We have regressed from the world’s largest lending nation to the greatest debtor. Millions of jobs have left these shores and migrated southward and eastward. We now have a trade deficit that is larger than the economies many nations; our government operated on borrowed money and borrowed time to keep the country afloat. Yet I have a solution. Place a Tobin Tax on all the equity markets.
The Tobin tax is named after the man who conceived it: Professor (and Nobel Laureate) James Tobin. Professor Tobin proposed to place a very small tax in any instance where currencies were exchanged for one another (for example US Dollars to Euros, Pounds to Yen, Rupees to Pesos, etc.) the idea of placing a small levy would be to discourage excessive speculation on the currencies; speculation—as demonstrated by the meltdown in Southeast Asia in the late 1990s (or our current debacle)—can foil the progress of proper development. Likewise, it was speculation which has led to the muddle the United States has recently found itself in. Much of the turmoil currently surrounding us could have been avoided if everyone hadn’t jumped aboard the housing bubble; mortgage-backed securities provided a way for banks to lend freely without fear of default. Speculation made us drunk on paper money.
Thus I propose the Tobin tax on stock, bonds, options, futures, derivatives, credit-default swaps, commodities, and mortgage-backed securities. With a very small levy, say .1% or less (even .01%), we could raise many billions of dollars (or even trillions) to plug the government’s ballooning deficits. A higher Tobin tax (.5%) could pay down the long term US debt, and pay for things like universal healthcare and a college education for all. I liken the equity markets to the great lakes of money, or perhaps the Colorado River of money, and all we have to do is to place a small dam on those resources to solve our troubles. Trillions and trillions of dollars change hands every day in these markets and were the levy small enough, say .1% or perhaps even .05% it would be incorporated into the cost of doing business. Middle class investors would not even notice the miniscule cost added to investing in their portfolios. Likewise, buy-and-hold investors would not be affected by a very small tax on the cost of buying assets. They instead would be focused on the long-term growth of a company.
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Miles Disney... Naked Truth 
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