Korean Job Discussion Forums

[The Bobster]

Part of me wants to call this the worst kind of cynicism, but then I remember that the people who espouse this stuff are in the league of true-believers whose fervor has led to far worse in the past already, and who have already shown countless instances of both creating tragedy and then seeking to profit from it ...

I don't think you need to register or subscribe to read the whole article.

Congressional Republicans, backed by the White House, say they are using relief measures for the hurricane-ravaged Gulf coast to achieve a broad range of conservative economic and social policies, both in the storm zone and beyond.

Some new measures are already taking shape. In the past week, the Bush administration has suspended some union-friendly rules that require federal contractors pay prevailing wages, moved to ease tariffs on Canadian lumber, and allowed more foreign sugar imports to calm rising sugar prices. Just yesterday, it waived some affirmative-action rules for employers with federal contracts in the Gulf region.

Now, Republicans are working on legislation that would limit victims' right to sue, offer vouchers for displaced school children, lift some environment restrictions on new refineries and create tax-advantaged enterprise zones to maximize private-sector participation in recovery and reconstruction. Yesterday, the House overwhelmingly passed a bill that would offer sweeping protection against lawsuits to any person or organization that helps Katrina victims without compensation.

[TheUrbanMyth]

Some other parts of the article.

Apparently these proposals include eliminating "regulatory barriers to awarding federal funds to religious groups housing hurricane victims, waiving the estate tax for deaths in the storm effected states..."

WHAT? Those evil Republicans! Penalize (heavily) any religious groups that dare house hurricane victims and get those estate taxes back!

But wait. There is more vileness to come. As for lawsuits "The bill does permit lawsuits for injuries that were caused by willful, wanton, reckless or criminal conduct." In other words just like any condition that lawsuits can be made for.


Again, do away with lawsuits. How dare those evil Republicans allow any lawsuits no matter what grounds they are based on? This destroys the great capitalist system that America was founded on. What can Bush be thinking? I thought he was a great man, but this article has opened my eyes and now I see him for who he clearly is, Lucifer himself. Impeach the fool at once!








Sarcasm disclaimer in effect.

[The Bobster]

What you are missing is that the zealots of the "free market" are opportunistically capitalizing upon a tragedy - one that their own administration escalated to Biblical proportions do to neglect and mismanagement - in order to promote a political agenda, and one, I might add which is largely at odds with the prevailing notions about the role of government in that part of the US.

Another part of the article which did not quote earlier :

"The desire to bring conservative, free-market ideas to the Gulf Coast is white hot," says Rep. Mike Pence, the Indiana Republican who leads the Republican Study Group, an influential caucus of conservative House members. "We want to turn the Gulf Coast into a magnet for free enterprise. The last thing we want is a federal city where New Orleans once was."

In other words, the last thing desired by the right is for people to think the government has some responsibility for their welfare.

The needs of business and the needs of citizens do not always coincide, but the rightwing will never hear of that - I forsee the Gulf Coast being turned into a large-scale version of the abuses seen by the NAFTA-inspired machilladoras along the Mexican border.

For the Republican Right to seize upon a tragedy which they hear a lot of blame for, and try to use it to ride their philosophy into town and stick it up people's backsides, the very people who have suffered from their malfeasance ... words fail me.

[EFLtrainer]