[GPSCC-chat] Politics and Wall Street Crimes

[Spencer Graves]

Hello, All:


       You can help build the outrage about the lack of criminal charges 
against S&P and many who get massive favors from the US government at 
the expense of everyone else.  The organization I know that is most 
effectively raising this kind of issue right now is Rootstrikers, 
founded by Lawrence Lessig, whose book "Republic, Lost" is the best 
reference I know on this subject.[1] Rootstrikers is currently 
organizing two types of activities, and I'm working with them to help 
develop a third:


             (1) Rootstrikers Meetup groups that attempt to get the 
Right and Left talking with one another:  Both agree that crony 
capitalism is a major problem for the US, and there are group forming 
all over the nation trying to bring the Tea Party together with liberal 
democrats and others at all extremes of the political spectrum to build 
a consensus for action.  Tonight, 7-9 PM, there will be a meeting of the 
local group at Cafe Campbell 
(www.meetup.com/Rootstrikers/Los-Gatos-CA).  I have a conflict, but it 
would be great of someone else from this group could attend and report 
back to the rest of us.


             (2) Rootstrikers Street Teams are organization actions of 
various kinds.  They are organizing a meeting next Tuesday evening at 
7:30 in San Francisco to plan a campaign around the Disclose act and 
similar issues.  (www.rootstrikers.org/calendar) It would be great if 
someone could attend this and make suggestions for things we could do.


             (3) I'm trying to recruit volunteers to help document the 
corrosive influence of money in politics.  See 
"http://en.wikiversity.org/wiki/Documenting_crony_capitalism".


       Best Wishes,
       Spencer


[1] See "rootstrikers.org" plus the Wikipedia articles on Lawrence 
Lessig and "Republic, Lost"


On 2/7/2013 9:05 AM, Gerry Gras wrote:
>
> William Greider has an article in The Nation about
> the 2008 Wall Street disaster.
>
> "... President Obama and his administration are stalked by a question 
> of scandal that will not go away: Why isn’t anyone going to jail? The 
> lawsuit’s accusation against S&P sounds like a crime. ..."
>
> "I have a hunch this scandal is not going away and it will gnaw at 
> Obama during his second term. The outrage will expand as more bits of 
> evidence keep surfacing in various lawsuits. It reminds me a little of 
> the Watergate scandal in the 1970s ... "
>
>
> "Why Don't White-Collar Criminals Get Equal Time?"
> http://www.commondreams.org/view/2013/02/06
> http://www.thenation.com/blog/172670/why-dont-white-collar-criminals-get-equal-time 
>
>
> Gerry
>
> P.S. I sure hope Greider is right that the scandal will
> not go away and the outrage will expand.  I have worried
> for some time that if little or nothing is done, we may
> have another economic mess as bad or worse as the mess
> in 2008.  I'll be sending a letter to my reps about this.
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-- 
Spencer Graves, PE, PhD
President and Chief Technology Officer
Structure Inspection and Monitoring, Inc.
751 Emerson Ct.
San José, CA 95126
ph:  408-655-4567
web:  www.structuremonitoring.com