Wall Street Finding Washington a Friendlier Place.
May 24, 2013
'Bank lobbyists are not leaving it to lawmakers to draft legislation that softens financial regulations. Instead, the lobbyists are helping to write it themselves.
Portside aims to provide varied material of interest to people on the left that will help them to interpret the world, and to change it.
Quotes of the Day
It's not a wild-eyed demand
May 3, 2013
'The best way to move money from Wall Street to Main street is through a financial transaction tax -- a small charge on each and every sale of stocks, bonds and derivatives of all kinds. Consider it a sin tax on Wall Street's many vices.
'Going Bulworth'
May 22, 2013
'The real crises are mass unemployment and falling wages. Mindless cuts in government spending are costing jobs, slowing any recovery. We have an economy that rewards only the few.
Apple Antics
May 21, 2013
'In addition to those standard multinational tactics, Apple established at the apex of its offshore network an offshore holding company that it says is not tax resident in any nation.
Not Just Righwingers Affected
May 20, 2013
'Much of the problem in trying to stop the march to war was precisely the fear of many pundits that they would be seen as weak and, above all, not Serious if they objected.
Step Up to the Plate
May 18, 2013
'Now is the time for the Obama of the campaign trail finally to step up to the plate.
Black Mountain Rises in Detroit
May 18, 2013
'“What is really, really disturbing to me is how some companies treat the city of Detroit as a dumping ground. Nobody knew this was going to happen.'
The Golden Calf
May 16, 2013
'The joy of living is decreasing, indecency and violence are on the rise, and poverty is becoming more evident.
Credible Opponents to Austerity?
May 16, 2013
'Driven by their fetish of "competitiveness," a part of the European Commission and German Chancellor Angela Merkel … are trying to better position Europe globally by way of reducing hard-fought employee rights and social standards in all countrie
North America and Climate Change
May 15, 2013
'Numerous studies assume a rise in summer drought periods in North America in the future and an increasing probability of severe cyclones relatively far north along the U.S. East Coast in the long term.
A Threat to the Eurozone
May 14, 2013
'... it is clear that policy makers are seriously worried that millions of frustrated young job seekers pose as much of a threat to the euro zone as excessive government debt or weak banks.'
Watching Downton Abbey
May 13, 2013
''Watching Downton Abbey would be pure escapism, a simple respite from the grind of work and duties of home. That is, except for the disquieting reality that Downton Abbey's classist mores increasingly intrude on American life.
Working Mothers Day
May 12, 2013
'More women workers are in minimum-wage jobs than men, yet our minimum wage hasn’t kept up. (If it had kept up with inflation since 1968 it would be over $10 today.)
Rising level of concentrations of carbon dioxide in the air
May 10, 2013
'The problem is simply stated: the power of the fossil fuel companies is too great.
New Dream
May 10, 2013
'My favorite slogan from the Occupy movement was "Wake up from the American Dream. Create a livable American reality." That is the challenge We the People face in the 21st century.