Category Archives: globalization

Enough about Naipaul the man — read his books

Posted on August 15, 2018 by oddmanout215

The world is what it is; men who are nothing, who allow themselves to become nothing, have no place in it. — V.S. Naipaul, A Bend In the River (1979) Pardon me for breathing! And make no mistake — the … Continue reading →

Posted in arts, fiction, globalization, history, mainstream media, terrorism | Tagged A Bend In the River, Guerrillas, Nobel Prize, The world is what it is, Trinidad, V.S. Naipaul | Leave a comment

Britain’s PM seeks to ‘steady’ the Titanic

Posted on June 27, 2016 by oddmanout215

Here’s David Cameron using an unfortunate nautical metaphor to announce his resignation after a majority of Brits voted this week for the Brexit: I will do everything I can as Prime Minister to steady the ship over the coming weeks … Continue reading →

Posted in globalization, Great Recession, Obama | Tagged Barack Obama, Brexit, David Cameron, Donald Trumo, Hillary Clinton, London Times' Rich List, neolib, steady the ship | 1 Comment

‘Deflategate’ a bigger story than state of union

Posted on January 22, 2015 by oddmanout215

I was on the porch at the shack with Swamp Rabbit, critiquing Barack Obama’s sixth State of the Union address. Obama was the embodiment of magical thinking for American liberals, an icon of hope because he was an articulate outsider. … Continue reading →

Posted in Congress, economic collapse, globalization, Great Recession, humor, mainstream media, Obama, plutocracy, unemployment | Tagged "Deflategate", Barack Obama, income inequality, Indianapolis Colts, New England Patriots, SOTU, State of the Union | Leave a comment

‘Abundance without attachment’ is right-wing doubletalk

Posted on December 17, 2014 by oddmanout215

Swamp Rabbit and I huddled next to the wood stove and pored over a cheery Christmas article by economist Arthur C. Brooks, who wants people to make an attitude adjustment regarding possessions. He urges readers to “collect experiences, not things,” … Continue reading →

Posted in apocalypse, down and out, economic collapse, food, globalization, Great Recession, humor, liar, life in the big city, mainstream media, philosophy, unemployment, world-wide economy | Tagged abundance without attachment, American Enterprise Institute, Arthur C. Brooks, Billy Graham, Christmas, Dick Cheney, New York Times | 1 Comment

Tone-deaf Obama sings Walmart’s praises

Posted on May 9, 2014 by oddmanout215

Swamp Rabbit and I had just watched a PBS show about “nightmare bacteria” — insidious, human-killing organisms resistant to all antibiotics. Pretty scary. Then we saw a news item about Barack Obama appearing at a Walmart to praise the company … Continue reading →

Posted in climate change, economic collapse, globalization, humor, liar, mainstream media, Obama | Tagged Barack Obama, FDR, green energy, neoliberal, New Deal, nightmare bacteria, Robert Reich, swamp rabbit, Walmart | Leave a comment

Obama to EU: Frack, baby, frack

Posted on March 29, 2014 by oddmanout215

From Common Dreams: Speaking after a meeting with European leaders at the [European Union]-US summit in Brussels on Wednesday, President Barack Obama suggested that the U.S. is open to exporting fracked shale gas, once promised as the source of American … Continue reading →

Posted in climate change, environmentalism, globalization, humor, Iraq war, Obama, world-wide economy | Tagged Crimea, European Union, fracked shale gas, fracking reserves, swamp rabbit, Ukraine | 3 Comments

Pro-union Democrats an endangered species

Posted on March 26, 2014 by oddmanout215

Swamp Rabbit is a big fan of Robert Reich, Secretary of Labor during the Bill Clinton years, long-time economics professor and a high-profile advocate for workers’ rights. I’ve noted elsewhere that Reich often writes variations on the same column and … Continue reading →

Posted in Congress, economic collapse, globalization, Great Recession, humor, liar, mainstream media, plutocracy, unemployment | Tagged Chattanooga, General Motors, labor unions, Robert Reich for president, Sen. Bob Corker, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, swamp rabbit, UAW, Walmart | Leave a comment

A buy from Amazon is a vote for wage slavery

Posted on March 6, 2014 by oddmanout215

I read a piece in Salon about Amazon’s business model and almost throttled my friend Swamp Rabbit, I guess because he was the only creature in sight. But I was glad to see that at least one media writer wasn’t … Continue reading →

Posted in down and out, economic collapse, globalization, humor, mainstream media, plutocracy, The New Depression, unemployment | Tagged Amazon, bricks-and-mortar stores, customercentric, Dave Eggers, Jeff Bezos, Luddite, swamp rabbit, Walmart | 1 Comment

Regarding Coca-Cola (corporate America’s rotgut)

Posted on February 12, 2014 by oddmanout215

I recently discussed with my friend Swamp Rabbit the sappy Coca-Cola commercial that features, as Guardian UK put it, “a multi-lingual rendition of ‘America the Beautiful’ sung by children and illustrated with a diversity of New Americana scenes…” The usual … Continue reading →

Posted in arts, campaign finance reform, Congress, down and out, globalization, humor, mainstream media, movies, Occupy Wall Street, plutocracy, The New Depression, world-wide economy | Tagged Coca-Cola, David Itzkoff, Howard Beale, Paddy Chayevsky, Super Bowl commercial, swamp rabbit | 4 Comments

Beware the polar Gore-Tex… or is it cortex?

Posted on January 8, 2014 by oddmanout215

It seemed I might be able to change my socks two days in a row, but then Arctic air crept in on big bear claws and pushed the swamp back into the deep freeze. Swamp Rabbit, flipping out from cabin … Continue reading →

Posted in apocalypse, climate change, down and out, fiction, globalization, humor | Tagged Arctic, jet stream, polar vortex, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, swamp rabbit | 1 Comment