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REWIND - A Week of Quotes and Cartoons

SUNDAY

Quote of the Day
October 6, 2013

'That is a loaded question isn't it? You want my
opinion? This is President Obama's shutdown. He is
responsible for shutting this thing down; he's taken
an entirely political decision here. No, I don't think
they should get their back pay, frankly, I really
don't. I'm sick and tired of a massive, bloated federal
bureaucracy living on our backs, and taking money
out of us, a lot more money than most of us earn in
the private sector, then getting a furlough, and then
getting their money back at the end of it. Sorry, I'm
not for that. I want to punish these people. Sorry to
say that, but that's what I want to do.'

Fox Business Network analyst Stuart Varney,
when asked: 'Do you think that federal workers,
when this ends, are deserving of their back
pay or not?'

dweb8231Follow
Daily Kos
October 5. 2013
 

Toon of the Day

The Power of No
Doonesbury - Gary Trudeau
 

MONDAY

Quote of the Day

'For the rich, eminent domain works. But when the
poor or black or brown people see it as a solution to
a problem the banks don't feel like dealing with,
we're on the wrong foot. We're going to put these
banksters on the run!'

Archbishop Franzo King of Richmond, Ca.
prior to a meeting where the City Council
approved a plan to use eminent domain
to save borrowers from foreclosure

Washington Post
October 7, 2013
 

Toon of the Day

Message to the World
KAL
The Economist
 

TUESDAY

Quote of the Day

'It is widely reported that the Republicans are
looking for a face-saving way to back down from the
standoff they created on the budget and the debt
ceiling. According to these news accounts, this route
could involve another stab at the "grand bargain," a
deal that includes some tax increases and cuts to
Social Security and Medicare.   'This prospect
should inspire outrage beyond the fact that it would
make the Republicans huge winners coming from a
disastrous losing position. (Polls show that shutting
down the government to keep people from getting
health care is not a popular position.) That's an
issue for political junkies; the more important point
is that millions of seniors who are already struggling
would be asked to make further sacrifices for
basically no reason whatsoever.'

Economist Dean Baker
Truthout
 

Toon of the Day

House of Horrors
Jeff Darcy
 

WEDNESDAY

Quote of the Day

'What, then, is the future of New York, or really of
any number of big urban centers, in this new Gilded
Age? Does culture have a role to play? If we look at
the city as it is now, then we would have to say that
it looks a lot like the divided city that presumptive
mayor Bill de Blasio has been harping about: most
of Manhattan and many parts of Brooklyn are
virtual walled communities, pleasure domes for the
rich (which, full disclosure, includes me), and aside
from those of us who managed years ago to find our
niche and some means of income, there is no room
for fresh creative types. Middle-class people can
barely afford to live here anymore, so forget about
emerging artists, musicians, actors, dancers,
writers, journalists and small business people. Bit
by bit, the resources that keep the city vibrant are
being eliminated.'

Talking Heads frontperson David Byrne
Creative Time Reports
October 7, 2013
 

Toon of the Day

Democracy Works!
This Modern World - Tom Tomorrow
 

THURSDAY

Quote of the Day

'That's why people need to tell the President, "stand
tall, we are with you. No negotiating with hostage-
takers. Not about the Affordable Care Act, not about
the Grand Bargain and certainly not about cuts to
Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid, or more
giveaways for big corporations that outsource jobs.
You won the election. You must defend democracy
and you must stand up for the 99%, and that
means no more rewarding hostage-takers".'

AFL-CIO Policy Director Damon Silvers
AFL-CIO Now
October 10, 2013
 

Toon of the Day

What Is
Tom Toles - Washington Post
 

FRIDAY

Quote of the Day

'Why, then, are public pensions being targeted by an
Enron billionaire, the Pew Charitable Trusts,
corporate front groups and right-wing activists?
Because pretending public pensions are the primary
cause of state budget problems allows greedheads
and ideologues to distract attention from -- and
therefore prevent cuts to -- their beloved corporate
welfare. In some cases, it also allows them to embed
language in pension "reform" proposals that
transfers worker retirement money into alternative
investments -- the kinds that incur expensive hedge
fund fees and enrich Wall Street.'

David Sirota
AlterNet
October 10, 2013

Toon of the Day

Meanwhile at Fox
David Horsey - Los Angeles Times
 

SATURDAY

Quote of the Day

'Let's try to remember a lesson we all should have
learned as kids. Just because you were picked on by
the neighborhood bully is no excuse to go home and
kick the dog or punch your little brother.

'Maybe some inside the Beltway need a refresher
course. Just because a handful on the right have
shut down government and threatened default on
the debt that's no excuse to embrace proposals to
slash Medicare and Social Security.

'But that is exactly what is on the agenda, the
"compromise" reward for those who engineered the
lunacy of the last two weeks with the attempt to
reverse the results of last November's election by
refusing to fund government services or pay the debt
unless the Affordable Care Act is defunded or
repealed.'

Karen Higgins,RN, co-president
of National Nurses United
Common Dreams
October 12, 2013
 

Toon of the Day

Education
David Fitzsimmons
Arizona Daily Star