{"id":20255,"date":"2017-11-26T00:21:42","date_gmt":"2017-11-26T08:21:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/?p=20255"},"modified":"2017-11-26T08:13:06","modified_gmt":"2017-11-26T16:13:06","slug":"rouge-forum-dispatch-after-black-friday-a-red-weekend-edition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/rouge-forum-dispatch-after-black-friday-a-red-weekend-edition\/","title":{"rendered":"Rouge Forum Dispatch: After Black Friday, a Red Weekend Edition"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><strong>We Say Fight Back!<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Starve-Fighting.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-20258 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Starve-Fighting-500x375.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Starve-Fighting-500x375.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Starve-Fighting-150x113.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Starve-Fighting.jpg 720w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Harvey Goldberg Lectures! Rosa Luxemburg \/ The German Workers Movement\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/xtIEdsyb9KQ?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/sds-adelson.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-20285\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/sds-adelson.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"231\" height=\"346\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/sds-adelson.jpg 231w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/sds-adelson-100x150.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 231px) 100vw, 231px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Adelson&#8217;s &#8220;SDS&#8221; is now online, free\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.sds-1960s.org\/books\/sds.pdf\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.sds-1960s.org\/books\/sds.pdf<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Book Antiqua; color: #ff0000; font-size: medium;\">THE WAR OF THE PARIS COMMUNE, 1871<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000; font-size: xx-small;\"><i><span style=\"font-family: Book Antiqua;\">by Mark Jacobsen<\/span><\/i> <\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000; font-size: xx-small;\"> <i><span style=\"font-family: Book Antiqua;\">USMC Command &amp; Staff College<\/span><\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<hr width=\"100%\" \/>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">I asked Professor Jacobsen to prepare this case study a few years ago for a course at the USMC Command &amp; Staff College. He has graciously permitted me to post it here.\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.clausewitz.com\/readings\/Jacobsen-Commune.htm\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.clausewitz.com\/readings\/Jacobsen-Commune.htm<\/a><br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><strong>The Little Red Schoolhouse<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/School_is_Hell-666.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-20286 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/School_is_Hell-666-500x281.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/School_is_Hell-666-500x281.png 500w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/School_is_Hell-666-150x84.png 150w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/School_is_Hell-666-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/School_is_Hell-666.png 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h1 id=\"headline\" class=\"headline\">Their Pledges Die. So Should Fraternities. (add football)<\/h1>\n<p class=\"story-body-text story-content\" data-para-count=\"196\" data-total-count=\"196\">Following a night of heavy drinking at a fraternity at Texas State University, a 20-year-old was found dead. Another 20-year-old died at Florida State University in nearly identical circumstances.<\/p>\n<p class=\"story-body-text story-content\" data-para-count=\"452\" data-total-count=\"648\">At Penn State University, the victim was 19. Security cameras and text messages documented the fumbling attempts by fraternity members to revive him and then to cover up the link between his unconscious condition and the 18 or so drinks that they forced on him in a roughly 90-minute span. As he moaned and thrashed and blood from a lacerated spleen filled his abdomen, they waited about 12 hours to summon medical help, by which point it was too late.<\/p>\n<p class=\"story-body-text story-content\" data-para-count=\"242\" data-total-count=\"890\">At Louisiana State University, the victim was 18, with a blood alcohol content of .496 percent. That\u2019s more than six times the legal limit for driving and about two and a half times the amount of alcohol that can cause someone to black out.<\/p>\n<p class=\"story-body-text story-content\" data-para-count=\"345\" data-total-count=\"1235\">All of these incidents occurred this year \u2014 the Texas and Florida ones in the last two weeks \u2014 and yet 2017 isn\u2019t some nadir. At least six young men died in connection with fraternity hazing rituals in 2014, according to <a href=\"http:\/\/www.hanknuwer.com\/hazing-deaths\/\">Hank Nuwer\u2019s Hazing Clearinghouse<\/a>, a website with a ghastly, heartbreaking tally. Two years before that, seven died.<\/p>\n<p id=\"story-continues-1\" class=\"story-body-text story-content\" data-para-count=\"254\" data-total-count=\"1489\">Across decades, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2013-12-30\/deadliest-frat-s-icy-torture-of-pledges-evokes-tarantino-films\">toll of deaths related to fraternity revelry<\/a> and recklessness is surely in the hundreds. And while physical stress plays a role in some fatalities, most reflect the kind of extreme drinking that\u2019s in the DNA of so-called Greek life.\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/11\/17\/opinion\/pledges-fraternities-violence-deaths.html\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.nytimes.com\/2017\/11\/17\/opinion\/pledges-fraternities-violence-deaths.html<\/a><\/p>\n<p data-para-count=\"254\" data-total-count=\"1489\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/school-burning.gif\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-20288 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/school-burning.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"trb_ar_hl_t\">State auditor finds top aides to UC President Napolitano interfered in audit, recommends reforms (not prosecution)<\/h1>\n<p>State Auditor <a id=\"PEPLT00008039\" title=\"Elaine Howle\" href=\"http:\/\/www.latimes.com\/topic\/politics-government\/government\/elaine-howle-PEPLT00008039-topic.html\">Elaine Howle<\/a> wants <a id=\"OREDU0000192\" title=\"University of California System\" href=\"http:\/\/www.latimes.com\/topic\/education\/colleges-universities\/university-of-california-system-OREDU0000192-topic.html\">University of California<\/a> regents to consider disciplining university employees who repeatedly interfered with a state audit, tried to hide their actions, misled investigators and withheld requested information until threatened with court action, according to a private report by her office obtained by The Times.<\/p>\n<p>Howle\u2019s office began investigating UC interference in a state audit on the performance of UC President <a id=\"PEPLT007544\" title=\"Janet Napolitano\" href=\"http:\/\/www.latimes.com\/topic\/politics-government\/government\/janet-napolitano-PEPLT007544-topic.html\">Janet Napolitano<\/a>\u2019s office after a whistleblower complaint early this year. Like a <a href=\"http:\/\/www.latimes.com\/politics\/la-pol-ca-uc-investigation-janet-napolitano-20171115-story.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">separate <\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.latimes.com\/politics\/la-pol-ca-uc-investigation-janet-napolitano-20171115-story.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">inquiry<\/a> commissioned by regents whose results were released last week, Howle\u2019s investigation<\/p>\n<p>determined that Napolitano approved a plan instructing the UC system\u2019s 10 campuses to submit responses to confidential questionnaires about her office for review by her aides before sending them on to the state auditor.<\/p>\n<p>Both investigations found that Napolitano\u2019s aides asked campuses to tone down or delete criticisms. But neither found sufficient evidence that Napolitano knew her aides planned to do this. Napolitano told investigators that had she known, she would not have approved their plan.<\/p>\n<p>Both reports primarily blamed Napolitano\u2019s Chief of Staff Seth Grossman and Deputy Chief of Staff Bernie Jones for the interference. Howle\u2019s report cited additional evidence of wrongdoing by Jones, including intentional failures at least twice to provide requested documents to the auditor and an inappropriate effort to identify the whistleblower.\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.latimes.com\/local\/lanow\/la-me-uc-audit-interference-20171122-story.html\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.latimes.com\/local\/lanow\/la-me-uc-audit-interference-20171122-story.html<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Grad-School-Drop-out.gif\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-20289\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Grad-School-Drop-out.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"327\" height=\"380\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h1 class=\" \">Universities wage last-minute fight against grad student tax hike<\/h1>\n<p>University leaders and education groups are urging Congress to reconsider provisions in the House GOP tax bill that would mean huge tax hikes for graduate students \u2014 and that they warn could cripple graduate education in America.<\/p>\n<p>Under the House plan, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politicopro.com\/legislative-compass\/bill\/US_115_HR_1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-bill-id=\"US_115_HR_1\">H.R. 1 (115)<\/a>, tuition discounts that schools offer to graduate students would be <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politicopro.com\/f\/?id=0000015f-a362-d390-ab5f-aff7e0850001\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">taxed as income<\/a>, on top of the stipends the students make working as teaching or research assistants. At some schools \u2014 where the tuition breaks run upwards of $40,000 \u2014 that could more than triple students&#8217; taxable income, causing some to spend huge portions of their stipends on massive tax bills.<b> <\/b>The plan would also eliminate a lifetime learning credit worth about $2,000 that many grad students depend upon.\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/story\/2017\/11\/15\/universities-wage-last-minute-fight-against-grad-student-tax-hike-in-house-gop-plan-244951\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.politico.com\/story\/2017\/11\/15\/universities-wage-last-minute-fight-against-grad-student-tax-hike-in-house-gop-plan-244951<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"_oDd\" data-hveid=\"39\"><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><em><strong><span class=\"_Tgc\">This month, a report by the American Association of University Professors showed that adjuncts now constitute 76.4 percent of U.S. faculty across all institutional types, from liberal-arts colleges to research universities to community colleges.<\/span><span class=\"_D8e\">Apr 28, 2014<\/span><\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/div>\n<div data-hveid=\"39\"><\/div>\n<div data-hveid=\"39\">\n<h1>Absences, Trauma, and Orphaned Children: How the Opioid Crisis Is Ravaging Schools<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<p>David Cox is the superintendent in Allegany County in western Maryland. For the past five years, Cox and his staff have been responding to an opioid epidemic that has ravaged their community, leaving in its wake orphaned children and others facing emotional trauma. \u201cWe have kids who have lost their parents, and, unfortunately, there have been situations where the parents have overdosed with the kids watching,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Cox testified before Congress this month, and spoke to <i>Education Week<\/i>\u2019s Denisa R. Superville about what his district of 74,000 students needs to deal with the crisis. The conversation has been edited for clarity and length.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"section-break\" \/>\n<p><b>When did you first start noticing the impacts of the opioid epidemic in Allegany County Schools? <\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>COX:<\/b> About five years ago, our principals started talking to me about their concerns with attendance. We\u2019ve had, historically, a very high elementary attendance rate\u2014something like 96 or 97 percent. The number of kids who began to develop more chronic absenteeism was one of the first signs. We have positions that are called PPW\u2014Pupil Personnel Workers\u2014who work with the schools and with the counselors and make home visits whenever there are [attendance] issues.<\/p>\n<p>In establishing contacts with some of our families, some of the principals learned that we had an increasing number of parents who were addicted to opioids and were using opioids. They noticed that the chronic attendance issues were linked to parents\u2019 use of opioids:\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.edweek.org\/ew\/articles\/2017\/11\/20\/absences-trauma-and-orphaned-children-how-the.html\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.edweek.org\/ew\/articles\/2017\/11\/20\/absences-trauma-and-orphaned-children-how-the.html<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/School-Over.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-20292 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/School-Over-500x500.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/School-Over-500x500.png 500w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/School-Over-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/School-Over-768x768.png 768w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/School-Over.png 1500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h1>San Diego Unified Has Slashed Its Busing Program<\/h1>\n<p>For an increasing number of students, buses aren\u2019t available to take them to school at all. In 2010-2011, the district ran 2,300 bus routes and transported 17,500 students daily. This year, it\u2019s down to 1,439 routes moving 9,330 students a day. And the district continues to cut busing.<\/p>\n<p>Buses no longer run from Michelle Huffaker\u2019s neighborhood in University City to the magnet school her daughter attends, more than 20 miles away in Paradise Hills. So in the mornings, Huffaker drives her daughter two miles to Clairemont, where she catches the bus to school.<\/p>\n<p>Now, on top of the $500 bill she pays to the school district for busing each year, she also pays bus fees for the MTS bus her daughter has to catch when neither parent is available to pick her up from school. Those cost $2.50 a ride, or $36 for a monthly pass.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s not free and equal access to education if you can\u2019t afford to get your child to school. Part of going to school is getting to school,\u201d Huffaker said. \u201cIt should be illegal to charge for that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Bus fees are fairly common in California, one of 12 states that allows school districts to charge parents fees for the school bus. San Diego Unified started charging in the 2010-2011 school year. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.voiceofsandiego.org\/topics\/education\/san-diego-unified-dramatically-whittled-away-busing-program\/\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.voiceofsandiego.org\/topics\/education\/san-diego-unified-dramatically-whittled-away-busing-program\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Capitalism-Rabbit.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-20299 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Capitalism-Rabbit-500x594.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"594\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Capitalism-Rabbit-500x594.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Capitalism-Rabbit-126x150.jpg 126w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Capitalism-Rabbit-421x500.jpg 421w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Capitalism-Rabbit.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"post-header__text__heading\">College Access is Still a Problem (capitalist schooling is Always segregated schooling)<\/h1>\n<div class=\"block-paragraph\">\n<div class=\"rich-text\">\n<p>Low-income students have consistently attended college at lower rates than those from high-income families. But over the last 30 years, <a href=\"https:\/\/nces.ed.gov\/programs\/digest\/d16\/tables\/dt16_302.30.asp\">the percentage of low-income high school students<\/a> pursuing a degree immediately after graduation has almost doubled. Though this figure may encourage some to dismiss college access as a challenge of yesteryear, new research demonstrates that we are still a long way from declaring \u201cmission accomplished.\u201d The continued problem of college access depends a great deal on how it\u2019s defined.<\/p>\n<p>Research from Raj Chetty and his colleagues,<a href=\"http:\/\/www.equality-of-opportunity.org\/papers\/coll_mrc_paper.pdf\"> Mobility Report Cards: The Role of Colleges in Intergenerational Mobility,<\/a> confirms what many have already assumed to be true: While more low-income students are going to college, they are generally not attending the same institutions as their well-off peers. The majority are enrolling in community colleges and for-profit institutions, where they tend to have lower graduation rates and diminished economic returns. Meanwhile, wealthier students are far more likely to attend elite public and private four-year universities and continue to ascend the top rungs of the income ladder.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&#8230;College enrollment by institution type is <em><strong>highly segregated according to parental income.<\/strong><\/em> In particular, access rates for low-income students have an inverse relationship with selectivity and prestige. At the top of the food chain, Chetty et al. found that students with families in the top one percent of the income distribution are 77 times more likely to attend an Ivy League university than those students whose families have incomes in the bottom quintile. Similar disparities exist at elite public universities, where only about six percent of students come from a family in the bottom income quintile. (charts and more <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newamerica.org\/education-policy\/edcentral\/college-access-still-problem\/\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.newamerica.org\/education-policy\/edcentral\/college-access-still-problem\/<\/a>)<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><strong>The International Hot War of the Rich on the Poor<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Calvin-Killing.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-20260\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Calvin-Killing.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"357\" height=\"451\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Calvin-Killing.jpg 357w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Calvin-Killing-119x150.jpg 119w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 357px) 100vw, 357px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"entry-title\">Observatory Estimates 340,000 Killed in Syrian War<\/h1>\n<h1 class=\"trb_ar_hl_t\">\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/syria3.gif\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-20293\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/syria3.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"328\" height=\"353\" \/><\/a><\/h1>\n<h1 class=\"trb_ar_hl_t\">The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights<\/h1>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/news.antiwar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/701.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"320\" height=\"200\" align=\"right\" hspace=\"10\" vspace=\"10\" \/>The split on the figures shows that pro-government forces are taking the biggest brunt among combatants, with 119,000 pro-government fighters killed, including Syrian troops, militia members, and Hezbollah fighters. <a href=\"http:\/\/news.antiwar.com\/2017\/11\/24\/observatory-estimates-340000-killed-in-syrian-war\/\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">news.antiwar.com\/2017\/11\/24\/observatory-estimates-340000-killed-in-syrian-war\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h1 id=\"article-heading_1-0\" class=\"comp article-heading\">Conservative Estimate: Cost of Iraq War: Timeline, Economic Impact<\/h1>\n<h1 id=\"article-heading_1-0\" class=\"comp article-heading\">The War added more than $1\u00a0trillion to the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thebalance.com\/the-u-s-debt-and-how-it-got-so-big-3305778\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"internalLink\" data-ordinal=\"4\">U.S. debt<\/a>.<\/h1>\n<h3>Timeline of Iraq War Costs<\/h3>\n<p>Here&#8217;s a timeline of what happened each year. Costs are\u00a0taken from the 2014\u00a0Congressional Budget Services Report\u00a0and Federal government spending reports. A table that summarizes these costs is below.<\/p>\n<div id=\"native-placeholder_1-0\" class=\"comp native-placeholder mntl-block\">\u00a0<strong>FY 2003 &#8211; $90.3 billion:\u00a0<\/strong>On March 19, the United States invaded Iraq\u00a0with &#8220;Shock and Awe.&#8221; Massive bombing and a ground invasion toppled the Hussein regime the next month.<\/div>\n<p><strong>FY 2004 &#8211; $90.9\u00a0billion:<\/strong> In April, the\u00a0U.S. laid\u00a0siege to\u00a0the Sunni-held\u00a0city of Falluja. That same month, photos of torture at the\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/abuse-of-iraqi-pows-by-gis-probed\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"externalLink\" data-ordinal=\"9\">Abu Ghraib prison<\/a>\u00a0further\u00a0incited insurgents.<\/p>\n<div id=\"billboard2-sticky_1-0\" class=\"comp billboard2-sticky billboard-sticky is-lockable\" data-height=\"600\" data-parent=\"\">\u00a0\u00a0In\u00a0June, the\u00a0U.S. appointed\u00a0Shiite\u00a0leader Iyad Allawi as Prime Minister. Despite this, Shia radicals turned on the United States\u00a0in\u00a0Najaf two months later.\u00a0In\u00a0November, the U.S. military launched a\u00a0major offensive against Sunni insurgents in Falluja.\u00a0For more on the internal politics, see\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thebalance.com\/sunni-shiite-split-3305550\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"internalLink\" data-ordinal=\"10\">Sunni-Shia Split<\/a>.<\/div>\n<p><strong>FY 2005 &#8211; $105.8\u00a0billion:<\/strong>\u00a0In\u00a0April, Iraq named\u00a0Kurdish leader Jalal Talabani as president, and Shiite\u00a0Ibrahim Jaafari\u00a0as Prime Minister. In May, Sunni insurgents killed 672 people in car bombings, double the\u00a0364 killed in April. In\u00a0October, voters approved a new constitution. It aimed\u00a0to create an Islamic federal democracy. In\u00a0December, they elected a new Parliament.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thebalance.com\/fy-2006-u-s-federal-budget-and-spending-3306309\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"internalLink\" data-ordinal=\"11\">FY 2006<\/a> &#8211; $108.3\u00a0billion:<\/strong> The\u00a0United States\u00a0responded\u00a0to escalating violence between Shiites, Sunnis, and Kurds that killed more than\u00a034,000 civilians. In February, Sunnis bombed\u00a0an important Shia shrine in Samarra.\u00a0In\u00a0April, newly re-elected President Talabani asked\u00a0Shia candidate Nouri al-Maliki to form a new government. An al-Qaida leader, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, was killed in Iraq. In November, Iraq and Syria restored diplomatic relations after nearly 25 years. In the Shia area of Sadr City in Baghdad, more than 200 died in car bombings.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cb-split\">In December, Saddam Hussein was quietly executed.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thebalance.com\/fy-2007-u-s-federal-budget-and-spending-3306310\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"internalLink\" data-ordinal=\"12\">FY 2007<\/a>\u00a0&#8211; $155.9 billion:<\/strong>\u00a0Bush announced a surge of 20,000 additional U.S. troops to help transition power to Iraq leaders. In\u00a0 February, more than 130 troops were killed by bombs in\u00a0Baghdad&#8217;s Sadriya market. In March, hundreds more were killed when Sunnis exploded three\u00a0trucks filled with toxic chlorine gas in Falluja and Ramadi. In\u00a0April,\u00a0200 people died from\u00a0bombs in Baghdad. In\u00a0August,\u00a0250 people were killed by truck and car bombs in\u00a0two Kurdish villages. Shia and Kurdish leaders formed an alliance to support Prime Minister Maliki. U.S-contractors\u00a0Blackwater security guards killed 17\u00a0civilians in Baghdad. By\u00a0December,\u00a0Britain handed\u00a0over security of the Basra province to Iraqi forces.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thebalance.com\/fy-2008-u-s-federal-budget-and-spending-3305797\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"internalLink\" data-ordinal=\"13\">FY 2008<\/a>\u00a0&#8211; $196.8\u00a0billion:<\/strong> In January, the Iraqi\u00a0Parliament allowed\u00a0former officials from Saddam Hussein&#8217;s Baath party to return to public life.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-content-block-last\">\n<p class=\"cb-split\">In<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>March,\u00a0Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad visited. Hundreds were killed when\u00a0Prime Minister Maliki cracked down on\u00a0Moqtada Sadr&#8217;s Mehdi Army\u00a0in Basra. In\u00a0September, the United States handed\u00a0over the Sunni\u00a0province of Anbar to the Shia-led government.\u00a0Bush signed the Status of Force agreement which promised to remove all U.S. troops from Iraq by 2011. (Source: &#8220;Did Obama Withdraw From Iraq Too Soon?&#8221; NPR, December 19, 2015.)<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thebalance.com\/fy-2009-u-s-federal-budget-and-spending-3306311\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"internalLink\" data-ordinal=\"14\">FY 2009<\/a>\u00a0&#8211; $132.9\u00a0billion<\/strong>: In January,\u00a0Iraq took\u00a0control of security in Baghdad&#8217;s Green Zone. In June,\u00a0U.S.\u00a0troops withdrew from all towns and cities, handing\u00a0over security duties to Iraq. In\u00a0July, Masoud Barzani (KDP) was re-elected as President.\u00a0In<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>December, the\u00a0Islamic State group claimed\u00a0responsibility for suicide bombings in Baghdad that killed at least 367 people\u00a0that year. Tension flared\u00a0with Iran when its\u00a0troops briefly occupied\u00a0an oilfield in Iraqi territory.\u00a0In\u00a0November,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thebalance.com\/what-has-obama-done-11-major-accomplishments-3306158\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"internalLink\" data-ordinal=\"15\">President Obama<\/a>\u00a0agreed\u00a0to pull out troops by 2011.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thebalance.com\/fy-2010-u-s-federal-budget-and-spending-3306312\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"internalLink\" data-ordinal=\"16\">FY 2010<\/a>\u00a0&#8211; $83.4\u00a0billion:<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0Troops withdrew, leaving 50,000 to advise Iraqi forces and protect U.S.\u00a0interests until 2011.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thebalance.com\/fy-2011-u-s-federal-budget-and-spending-3306313\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"internalLink\" data-ordinal=\"17\">FY 2011<\/a>\u00a0&#8211; $50.9\u00a0billion:\u00a0<\/strong>All U.S. troops left Iraq by end of December. The Shia government suppressed the Sunni minority. The Iraq military became weak. Both fueled the rise of the\u00a0Islamic State group.<\/p>\n<p><strong>2012-2014 &#8211;\u00a0$7.8\u00a0billion:<\/strong> The United States supported contractors who stayed in Iraq to protect U.S. interests.<\/p>\n<p><strong>2015-2016 &#8211; $38.7 billion: <em>Troops returned to Iraq<\/em> <\/strong>to train local soldiers to defeat the\u00a0Islamic State group.\u00a0\u00a0(Source: &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/fas.org\/sgp\/crs\/natsec\/RL33110.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"externalLink\" data-ordinal=\"18\">The Cost of Iraq, Afghanistan, and Other Global War on Terror Operations Since 9\/11<\/a>,&#8221; Table A1. Amy Belasco, Congressional Research Service,\u00a0March 29, 2014. &#8220;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-middle-east-14546763\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"externalLink\" data-ordinal=\"19\">Iraq ProfileTimeline<\/a>,&#8221; BBC.)\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thebalance.com\/cost-of-iraq-war-timeline-economic-impact-3306301\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.thebalance.com\/cost-of-iraq-war-timeline-economic-impact-3306301<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=IAZy75RKb84\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.youtube.com\/watch?v=IAZy75RKb84<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><strong>The International Economic War of the Rich on the Poor<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Slaves-Libya.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-20282 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Slaves-Libya-500x324.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"324\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Slaves-Libya-500x324.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Slaves-Libya-150x97.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Slaves-Libya-768x497.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Slaves-Libya.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"node-title\">Libya Is Home to a 21st-Century Slave Market and the UN Security Council Won&#8217;t Act<\/h1>\n<p>CNN recently aired a powerful report from Libya, where the reporters went into a house and shot footage of an auction of human beings. Yes, this is a 21st-century slave market. The journalists \u2013 Nima Elbagir, Raja Razek, Alex Platt and Bryony Jones \u2013 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2017\/11\/14\/africa\/libya-migrant-auctions\/index.html\">brought<\/a> to the world\u2019s attention something grotesque: evidence of how terrible the situation is these days not only in Libya, but also in the Sahel region of Africa&#8230;<\/p>\n<p>n the last years of Obama\u2019s presidency, he often referred to the \u2018mistakes in Libya\u2019 \u2013 in 2015, he bemoaned the \u2018leadership vacuum\u2019 created after the overthrow of the Qaddafi regime and in 2016, he said that the aftermath of the NATO war was the \u2018worst mistake\u2019 of his presidency. Obama told Chris Wallace last year that while he still thought the NATO war was the \u2018right thing to do,\u2019 he felt that \u2018failing to plan for the day after\u2019 was the catastrophe. Libya, Obama said, is a \u2018mess.\u2019 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.alternet.org\/world\/libya-home-21st-century-slave-market-and-un-security-council-wont-act\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.alternet.org\/world\/libya-home-21st-century-slave-market-and-un-security-council-wont-act<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Detroit-School-Smashed-up.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-20264 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Detroit-School-Smashed-up-500x362.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"362\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Detroit-School-Smashed-up-500x362.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Detroit-School-Smashed-up-150x108.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Detroit-School-Smashed-up-768x555.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/a>above, Detroit school<\/p>\n<h1 id=\"headline\" class=\"headline\">Detroit: The Most Exciting City in America?<\/h1>\n<p>Regarding \u201cDetroit, the Most Exciting City in America?<\/p>\n<p>Your advertisement for what is really the re-colonization of Detroit misses the fact that about 9 square miles are converted into a veritable Green Zone, but not quite as safe despite the massive surveillance and armed guards everywhere. Most of the rest of the city\u2019s 149 square miles is in ruins, and will remain so.<\/p>\n<p>Dogs in Detroit eat children. Children are burned alive in house fires caused by space heaters when the gas is shut off. The water supply in many areas competes with Flint. The city returned to its lead as the most violent city in the country last year.<\/p>\n<p>The bankrupt city gave a pizza magnate over $200 million to build a downtown sports arena. Spectacles are not recovery. And, to pile on, re-colonizer and owner of most of the Green Zone, multi-billionaire Dan Gilbert of Quicken Loans, was just given another $250 million gift from the city coffers to do a bit more building.<\/p>\n<p>The schools, key to any recovery, will never recover. Incompetence and rampant corruption&#8211;12 principals recently convicted of stealing more than a million dollars&#8211;are not cured.<\/p>\n<p>You say, \u201cAs capitalism returns to Detroit&#8217;s downtown in all its feverish forms, you can see the city materialize before your eyes. \u201c<\/p>\n<p>Capitalism never left Detroit. Capital\u2019s relentless desire for technology to replace humans combined with empire (outsourcing) and their sister, racism, to wreck my hometown.<\/p>\n<p>We know what happened to the original inhabitants when the colonizers arrived. It\u2019s similar today, but this time the Green Zone is completely surrounded.<\/p>\n<p>Dr Rich Gibson<br \/>\nEmeritus Professor San Diego State University<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Steam rips street apart in Detroit\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/TjwmXkjKEJw?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h1>Not Fit to Rule: Congress paid $17 million in workplace violation settlements<\/h1>\n<p>The government has paid more than $17 million in taxpayer money over the last 20 years to resolve claims of sexual harassment, overtime pay disputes and other workplace violations filed by employees of Congress.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"r_lapi\" href=\"http:\/\/abcnews.go.com\/topics\/entertainment\/tv\/the-office-steve-carell.htm\">The Office<\/a> of Compliance released the numbers amid a wave of revelations of sexual misconduct in the worlds of entertainment, business and politics that consumed <a class=\"r_lapi\" href=\"http:\/\/abcnews.go.com\/topics\/news\/us\/capitol-hill.htm\">Capitol Hill<\/a> this past week. Two female lawmakers described incidents of sexual harassment, one in explicit detail, and Minnesota Sen. Al Franken apologized to a woman who said he forcibly kissed her and groped her during a 2006 USO tour.<\/p>\n<p>Franken faces a likely investigation by the Senate Ethics Committee.<\/p>\n<p>In a statement on the office&#8217;s website on Friday, it said &#8220;based on the volume of recent inquiries about settlements reached under the Congressional Accountability Act, the executive director is releasing awards and settlement figures for 2015, 2016 and 2017 that would have been released as part of the OOC Annual Report early.&#8221;\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/abcnews.go.com\/Politics\/wireStory\/congress-paid-17-million-workplace-violation-settlements-51233774\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">abcnews.go.com\/Politics\/wireStory\/congress-paid-17-million-workplace-violation-settlements-51233774<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/WeOwnItcampaign\/videos\/1696197347099081\/\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.facebook.com\/WeOwnItcampaign\/videos\/1696197347099081\/<\/a><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"article-title p-name entry-title\">Seattle hits record high for income inequality, now rivals San Francisco<\/h1>\n<p>In short, the rich are getting richer in Seattle. The top 20 percent of income earners took home more than half the city\u2019s total income \u2014 and the richest saw a $40,000 pay raise in 2016.<\/p>\n<p>In 2016, Seattle hit an all-time high for a commonly used measure of income inequality, known as the <a class=\"content-link external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.scientificamerican.com\/article\/ask-gini\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Gini index<\/a>. And if you\u2019re worried about Seattle turning into the next San Francisco, this won\u2019t set your mind at ease: Last year marks the first time we\u2019ve matched the City by the Bay for this particular statistic.<\/p>\n<p>The U.S. Census Bureau has been calculating the Gini index for every place in the nation since 2006. The index is expressed as a number from 0 to 100, with a higher number indicating a more unequal distribution of household incomes.<\/p>\n<p>For example, a place with perfect equality \u2014 if such a place existed \u2014 would score 0, meaning every household had the exact same income. Conversely, an index of 100 would mean total inequality \u2014 one household earned all the income.<\/p>\n<p>Seattle\u2019s Gini index had always been between 48 and 49, without much change from year to year. And, in fact, it had seemed to be trending slightly downward since 2011.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.seattletimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/96df266c-c999-11e7-ad58-7329c6133f9d-960x640.jpg\" sizes=\"100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static.seattletimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/96df266c-c999-11e7-ad58-7329c6133f9d-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/static.seattletimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/96df266c-c999-11e7-ad58-7329c6133f9d-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/static.seattletimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/96df266c-c999-11e7-ad58-7329c6133f9d-780x520.jpg 780w, https:\/\/static.seattletimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/96df266c-c999-11e7-ad58-7329c6133f9d-320x213.jpg 320w, https:\/\/static.seattletimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/96df266c-c999-11e7-ad58-7329c6133f9d-480x320.jpg 480w, https:\/\/static.seattletimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/96df266c-c999-11e7-ad58-7329c6133f9d-640x427.jpg 640w, https:\/\/static.seattletimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/96df266c-c999-11e7-ad58-7329c6133f9d-960x640.jpg 960w, https:\/\/static.seattletimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/96df266c-c999-11e7-ad58-7329c6133f9d-568x379.jpg 568w, https:\/\/static.seattletimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/96df266c-c999-11e7-ad58-7329c6133f9d-375x250.jpg 375w, https:\/\/static.seattletimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/96df266c-c999-11e7-ad58-7329c6133f9d-750x500.jpg 750w, https:\/\/static.seattletimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/96df266c-c999-11e7-ad58-7329c6133f9d-667x445.jpg 667w, https:\/\/static.seattletimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/96df266c-c999-11e7-ad58-7329c6133f9d-414x276.jpg 414w, https:\/\/static.seattletimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/96df266c-c999-11e7-ad58-7329c6133f9d-736x491.jpg 736w, https:\/\/static.seattletimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/96df266c-c999-11e7-ad58-7329c6133f9d.jpg 1000w\" alt=\"\" \/><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.seattletimes.com\/seattle-news\/data\/seattle-hits-record-high-for-income-inequality-now-rivals-san-francisco\/?utm_source=facebook&#038;utm_medium=social&#038;utm_campaign=article_title_1.1\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.seattletimes.com\/seattle-news\/data\/seattle-hits-record-high-for-income-inequality-now-rivals-san-francisco\/?utm_source=facebook&#038;utm_medium=social&#038;utm_campaign=article_title_1.1<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Poverty-map.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-20273 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Poverty-map-500x500.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Poverty-map-500x500.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Poverty-map-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Poverty-map.jpg 648w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h1 id=\"headline\" class=\"headline\">Rising inequality charted across millennia<\/h1>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>Researchers discover what Engels knew 100 years ago!<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>November 15, 2017Source:Washington State UniversitySummary:Researchers have found that the arc of prehistory bends towards economic inequality. In the largest study of its kind, the researchers saw disparities in wealth mount with the rise of agriculture, specifically the domestication of plants and large animals, and increased social organization.<\/p>\n<p>Their findings, published this week in the journal <em>Nature<\/em>, have profound implications for contemporary society, as inequality repeatedly leads to social disruption, even collapse, said Tim Kohler, lead author and Regents professor of archaeology and evolutionary anthropology at Washington State University. The United States, he noted, currently has one of the highest levels of inequality in the history of the world.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Inequality has a lot of subtle and potentially pernicious effects on societies,&#8221; Kohler said.<\/p>\n<p>The study gathered data from 63 archaeological sites or groups of sites. Comparing house sizes within each site, researchers assigned Gini coefficients, common measures of inequality developed more than a century ago by the Italian statistician and sociologist Corrado Gini. In theory, a country with complete wealth equality would have a Gini coefficient of 0, while a country with all the wealth concentrated in one household would get a 1.<\/p>\n<p>The researchers found that hunter-gatherer societies typically had low wealth disparities, with a median Gini of .17. Their mobility would make it hard to accumulate wealth, let alone pass it on to subsequent generations. Horticulturalists &#8212; small-scale, low-intensity farmers &#8212; had a median Gini of .27. Larger scale agricultural societies had a media Gini of .35.<\/p>\n<p>To the researchers&#8217; surprise, inequality kept rising in the Old World while it hit a plateau in the New World, said Kohler. The researchers attribute this to the ability of Old World societies &#8220;to literally harness big domesticated mammals like cattle and eventually horse and water buffalo,&#8221; Kohler said.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedaily.com\/releases\/2017\/11\/171115130853.htm\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.sciencedaily.com\/releases\/2017\/11\/171115130853.htm<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=C7BTzvJryjc\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.youtube.com\/watch?v=C7BTzvJryjc<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/UAW-sellouts-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-20279\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/UAW-sellouts-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"480\" height=\"360\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/UAW-sellouts-1.jpg 480w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/UAW-sellouts-1-150x113.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 480px) 100vw, 480px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"utility-bar-wrap\">\n<div class=\"utility-bar\">\n<div class=\"util-bar-primary-modules\">\n<div class=\"util-bar-module util-bar-module-share\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"util-bar-module util-bar-module-comments\">\n<div class=\"util-bar-btn util-bar-btn-comments\" data-uotrack=\"UtilityBarCommentsBtn\" data-module-name=\"utility-bar-module-comments\"><span class=\"util-bar-comment-count\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"util-bar-secondary-modules\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<section id=\"module-position-QcQruhA_0o0\" class=\"storytopbar-bucket story-headline-module story-story-headline-module\">\n<h1 class=\"asset-headline speakable-headline\">While UAW Howls &#8220;Buy American!&#8221;Ford opens first proving ground in China<\/h1>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"speakable-p-1 p-text\">Ford Motor Co. is opening its first vehicle testing facility in China, the company announced Friday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"speakable-p-2 p-text\">The new test center in Nanjing, China, where Ford already runs a research and engineering center, is the automaker\u2019s first in the world\u2019s largest auto market. The Nanjing Test Center and accompanying MakeSpace creative hub represent $100 million of the company\u2019s roughly $200 million investment in Nanjing.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">The opening of the test center comes as Ford and other automakers scramble to expand in the rapidly growing Chinese auto market. The Dearborn-based automaker is also partnering with Chinese electric-vehicle giant Anhui Zotye Automobile Co. in a $756 million joint venture to sell all-electric vehicles there.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">The roughly 160-acre proving ground in Nanjing will allow Ford to more quickly develop cars for the Chinese market. It features 80 different types of road surfaces conditions, a nearly two-mile-long test track and an emissions testing facility. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.detroitnews.com\/story\/business\/autos\/ford\/2017\/11\/24\/ford-opens-first-proving-ground-china\/107989006\/\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.detroitnews.com\/story\/business\/autos\/ford\/2017\/11\/24\/ford-opens-first-proving-ground-china\/107989006\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/UAW-Park.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-20280\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/UAW-Park.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"477\" height=\"284\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/UAW-Park.png 477w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/UAW-Park-150x89.png 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 477px) 100vw, 477px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><strong>The Emergence of Fascism as a Popular Mass Movement and The War on Reason <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Madeleine Albright: U.S. is the Indispensable Nation\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/dP7vuZMw9Mc?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"entry-title\">White Nationalist Richard Spencer Gets His Money From Louisiana Cotton Fields\u2014and the US Government<\/h1>\n<p>America\u2019s rise was \u201cnot through black people\u201d and \u201chas nothing to do with slavery,\u201d Spencer retorted. \u201cWhite people could have figured out another way to pick cotton,\u201d he said. \u201cWe do it now.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He is in a position to know. Spencer, along with his mother and sister, are absentee landlords of 5,200 acres of cotton and corn fields in an impoverished, largely African American region of Louisiana, according to records examined by Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting. The farms, controlled by multiple family-owned businesses, are worth millions: A 1,600-acre parcel <a href=\"https:\/\/www.documentcloud.org\/documents\/3518494-Spenc-Sale.html\">sold for $4.3 million<\/a> in 2012.<\/p>\n<p>The Spencer family\u2019s farms are also\u00a0subsidized by the federal government. From 2008 through 2015, the Spencers received $2 million in US farm subsidy payments, according to federal data.\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/politics\/2017\/03\/richard-spencer-cotton-farms-louisiana-subsidies\/#\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.motherjones.com\/politics\/2017\/03\/richard-spencer-cotton-farms-louisiana-subsidies\/#<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><strong>Solidarity for Never<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/sellout-2.gif\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-20294 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/sellout-2-500x500.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/sellout-2-500x500.gif 500w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/sellout-2-150x150.gif 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Does AFGE Rank #1 as the most corrupt\u00a0 union in the USA?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em><strong><span class=\"headermed\">Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS)<\/span><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p><em><strong><span class=\"headersm\">Criminal Enforcement Actions 2017 (11 AFGE bosses pled guilty or were convicted in 2017&#8211;so far)<br \/>\n<\/span><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>On November 7, 2017,<\/strong> in the United States District Court for the District of Arizona, Patrick Remigio, former President of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 2859 (located in Phoenix, Ariz.), was sentenced to 18 months of imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release. \u00a0Remigio was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $95,000 and a special assessment of $100. \u00a0On October 19, 2016, Remigio pled guilty to wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343. \u00a0The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Phoenix Resident Investigator Office, Department of Homeland Security&#8217;s Office of Professional Responsibility, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.<\/p>\n<p><strong>On November 7, 2017,<\/strong> in the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina, Columbia Division, Gordon Cairns, former President of United Steelworkers Local 1089 (located in Harrisburg, N.C.), was charged with one count of embezzlement in the amount of $63,999, one count of failure to maintain records, one count of making false statements, and one count of destruction of records, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c), 439(a), 439(b), and 439(c), respectively.\u00a0 The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta-Nashville District Office.<\/p>\n<p><strong>On November 1, 2017,<\/strong> in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Western Division, Ronald Coldren, former Financial Secretary of Steelworkers Local 207 (located in Findlay, Ohio), was indicted for one count of embezzlement in the amount of $30,639.\u00a0 The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati-Cleveland District Office.<\/p>\n<p><strong>On October 31, 2017, <\/strong>in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Stephen A. Royer, former Secretary-Treasurer of Machinists Lodge 243 (located in East Prospect, Pa.), was sentenced to one year and one day of incarceration followed by three years of supervised release.\u00a0 Royer was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $130,869 and a special assessment of $100.\u00a0 On June 19, 2017, Royer pled guilty to one count of embezzlement, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c).\u00a0 The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office.<\/p>\n<p><strong>On October 31, 2017,<\/strong> in Rush County Circuit Court, Rushville, Indiana, David Maddy, former Financial Secretary-Treasurer of United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 2339 (located in Rushville, Ind.), pled guilty to Theft, a Class D Felony, in violation of I.C. 35-43-4-2(a), for embezzling union funds in the amount of $37,197.\u00a0 Maddy was then sentenced to 30 months of imprisonment (suspended) and 30 months of probation, and he was ordered to pay a $500 fine (suspended) and $950 in probation fees and court costs.\u00a0 Maddy was also ordered to pay the remaining restitution of $12,197 owed after Local 2339\u2019s successful claim for the full $25,000 amount of the union\u2019s bond. \u00a0He paid the ordered amount following the sentencing.\u00a0 The guilty plea and sentencing follow an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati-Cleveland District Office. Much more here <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dol.gov\/olms\/regs\/compliance\/enforce_2017.htm\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.dol.gov\/olms\/regs\/compliance\/enforce_2017.htm<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><strong>Spy versus Spy<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><strong>After one year of advising the CIA who AFT President Randi Weingarten is, the CIA denies they know her.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/CIA-weingarten.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-20266 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/CIA-weingarten-500x688.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"688\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/CIA-weingarten-500x688.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/CIA-weingarten-109x150.jpg 109w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/CIA-weingarten-364x500.jpg 364w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/CIA-weingarten-768x1056.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/CIA-weingarten.jpg 1700w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"title\">U.S. Government Planned False Flag Attacks to Start War With Soviet Union, JFK Documents Show<\/h1>\n<p>The U.S. government once wanted to plan false flag attacks with Soviet aircraft to justify war with the USSR or its allies, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.archives.gov\/files\/research\/jfk\/releases\/docid-32977055.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">newly declassified documents<\/a> surrounding the assassination of President John F. Kennedy show.\u00a0 In a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.archives.gov\/files\/research\/jfk\/releases\/docid-32977055.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">three-page memo<\/a>, members of the National Security Council wrote, &#8220;There is a possibility that such aircraft could be used in a deception operation designed to confuse enemy planes in the air, to launch a surprise attack against enemy installations or in a provocation operation in which Soviet aircraft would appear to attack US or friendly installations to provide an excuse for U.S. intervention.<\/p>\n<p>The memo shows that the department, along with the CIA, considered buying Soviet aircraft to stage the attacks, even getting estimates from the Air Force on how long it would take and how much it would cost to produce the planes domestically and covertly. Costs ranged from $3.5 million to $44 million per plane, depending on the model, most taking several months to build.\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.newsweek.com\/us-soviet-aircraft-jfk-docs-cover-operations-717460\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.newsweek.com\/us-soviet-aircraft-jfk-docs-cover-operations-717460<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><strong>The Magical Mystery Tour<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/1MillionAfricansTheTrilogy\/videos\/1657485434560783\/\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.facebook.com\/1MillionAfricansTheTrilogy\/videos\/1657485434560783\/<\/a><\/p>\n<h1 id=\"headline\" class=\"headline\">Superstitious &#8220;Militants&#8221; Kill 305 in Attack on Sufi Mosque in Egypt<\/h1>\n<p class=\"story-body-text story-content\" data-para-count=\"297\" data-total-count=\"297\">Militants detonated a bomb inside a crowded mosque in the Sinai Peninsula on Friday and then sprayed gunfire on panicked worshipers as they fled, killing at least 235 people and wounding at least 109 others. Officials called it the deadliest terrorist attack in Egypt\u2019s modern history.<\/p>\n<p class=\"story-body-text story-content\" data-para-count=\"347\" data-total-count=\"644\">The scale and ruthlessness of the assault, in an area racked by an Islamist insurgency, sent shock waves across the nation \u2014 not just for the number of deaths but also for the choice of target. Attacks on mosques are rare in Egypt, where the Islamic State has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/04\/15\/world\/middleeast\/alexandria-egypt-coptic-church-suicide-bombing.html?action=click&amp;contentCollection=Middle%20East&amp;module=RelatedCoverage&amp;region=EndOfArticle&amp;pgtype=article\">targeted Coptic Christian churches<\/a> and pilgrims but avoided Muslim places of worship.<\/p>\n<p class=\"story-body-text story-content\" data-para-count=\"437\" data-total-count=\"1081\">The attack injected a new element into Egypt\u2019s struggle with militants because most of the victims were Sufi Muslims, who practice a mystical form of Islam that the Islamic State and other Sunni extremist groups deem heretical. And it underscored the failure of President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, who has justified his harsh crackdown on political freedom in the name of crushing Islamic militancy, to deliver on his promises of security. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/11\/24\/world\/middleeast\/mosque-attack-egypt.html?hp&#038;action=click&#038;pgtype=Homepage&#038;clickSource=story-heading&#038;module=a-lede-package-region&#038;region=top-news&#038;WT.nav=top-news\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.nytimes.com\/2017\/11\/24\/world\/middleeast\/mosque-attack-egypt.html?hp&#038;action=click&#038;pgtype=Homepage&#038;clickSource=story-heading&#038;module=a-lede-package-region&#038;region=top-news&#038;WT.nav=top-news<\/a><\/p>\n<p data-para-count=\"437\" data-total-count=\"1081\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Religious-freedom.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-20269 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Religious-freedom-500x500.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Religious-freedom-500x500.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Religious-freedom-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Religious-freedom-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Religious-freedom.jpg 900w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><strong>The Best and Worst Things in the History of the World<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"James Stewart - Harvey (2\/2)\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/EzOIhLJ1C-Y?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"History of the United States Volume 1: Colonial Period - FULL #audiobook \ud83c\udfa7\ud83d\udcd6 | Greatest\ud83c\udf1fAudioBooks\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Cg8psGEqLn4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/cheddar\/videos\/1999247440395984\/\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.facebook.com\/cheddar\/videos\/1999247440395984\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><strong>So Long<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/herman-ed-obit.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-20296\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/herman-ed-obit.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"427\" height=\"628\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/herman-ed-obit.jpg 427w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/herman-ed-obit-102x150.jpg 102w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/herman-ed-obit-340x500.jpg 340w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 427px) 100vw, 427px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Ed Herman (key author &#8220;Manufacturing Consent&#8221;<br \/>\n<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Noam Chomsky - Manufacturing Consent\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/tTBWfkE7BXU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We Say Fight Back! Adelson&#8217;s &#8220;SDS&#8221; is now online, free\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.sds-1960s.org\/books\/sds.pdf\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.sds-1960s.org\/books\/sds.pdf<\/a> THE WAR OF THE PARIS COMMUNE, 1871 by Mark Jacobsen USMC Command &amp; Staff College I asked Professor Jacobsen to prepare this case study a few years ago for a course at the USMC Command &amp; Staff College. He has graciously permitted me to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20255","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20255","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20255"}],"version-history":[{"count":27,"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20255\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20301,"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20255\/revisions\/20301"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20255"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20255"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20255"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}