Frogblog

Heya, Tumblr. How’s things?

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 07:55:32 -0400

Heya, Tumblr. How’s things?

“Why? Because no matter how many years go by — 10, 20, 30 — you will be changed irrevocably. You may...

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 07:26:12 -0400

“Why? Because no matter how many years go by — 10, 20, 30 — you will be changed irrevocably. You may...

Better get him a picture. It won’t look like this for...

Thu, 31 May 2012 16:28:00 -0400

Better get him a picture. It won’t look like this for long.

Should I tell him he parked underneath a pigeon roost?

Thu, 31 May 2012 16:19:00 -0400

Should I tell him he parked underneath a pigeon roost?

Sadly, this portion of my day requires shoes.

Thu, 31 May 2012 15:25:51 -0400

Sadly, this portion of my day requires shoes.

That sky, guys.

Thu, 31 May 2012 09:29:00 -0400

That sky, guys.

"Wait. Rewind. Go back to something bigger than ourselves. Stop there."

Thu, 31 May 2012 07:12:00 -0400

Yes. I like this idea.

Oh jeez. Now I gotta go pee.

Thu, 31 May 2012 06:54:00 -0400

Oh jeez. Now I gotta go pee.

The National - Lucky You What you break is what you get.

Wed, 30 May 2012 23:01:34 -0400

The National - Lucky You

What you break is what you get.

Holy crap, guys. Your dinner plans were just invalidated.

Wed, 30 May 2012 19:36:00 -0400

Holy crap, guys. Your dinner plans were just invalidated.

Kirk Ave

Wed, 30 May 2012 08:34:17 -0400

Kirk Ave

Jefferson Avenue, in between the rainstorms last night.

Wed, 30 May 2012 06:51:00 -0400

Jefferson Avenue, in between the rainstorms last night.

wordishness replied to your photo: Kirk Ave How do you like shooting with the Canon? I’m...

Wed, 30 May 2012 05:52:00 -0400

wordishness replied to your photo: Kirk Ave How do you like shooting with the Canon? I’m...

RIP, Doc. You’ll never ever be forgotten.

Tue, 29 May 2012 20:22:00 -0400

RIP, Doc. You’ll never ever be forgotten.

I came downtown to hopefully make a few bucks doing street...

Tue, 29 May 2012 19:22:00 -0400

I came downtown to hopefully make a few bucks doing street portraits, and promptly fell victim to a Noah’s Ark-class deluge. So now I’m sitting in Mill Mountain Coffee and Tea taking pictures of George Harrison.

God’s own two-fisted Oreos.

Tue, 29 May 2012 18:46:00 -0400

God’s own two-fisted Oreos.

“As for me, I’d like to have money. And I’d like to be a good writer. These two...

Tue, 29 May 2012 09:42:00 -0400

“As for me, I’d like to have money. And I’d like to be a good writer. These two...

G’morning

Tue, 29 May 2012 08:52:00 -0400

G’morning

quetaratara: You know, the statement in general doesn’t bother...

Tue, 29 May 2012 08:02:00 -0400

quetaratara:

You know, the statement in general doesn’t bother me as much as the author’s own comment (not shown, obvs) conceding to it. I get the concept of the trickle down theory, but when did acceptance of just “scraps” become the mindset of America?

The problem is that too many people sit and accept the table scraps. They eat the scraps and bitch about not having enough - not bothering to figure out how or even try to get to the table above them. Or decide their only option is to give those above them more, so they in turn get more. (WUT)

I understand not everyone is capable. I understand circumstances may prevent some from moving forward. I’m not blind or dumb to the flaws of the theory, and I’m not saying it’s the right way either, so save it.

I am saying, however, sitting on your ass complaining you only get scraps & not doing anything about it will not better your situation.

I’m also not saying the “rich” (which is a subjective to everyone) shouldn’t pay their fair share. They totally should.

But not because those that could benefit aren’t willing to make a sacrifice either.

It’s give and take from both sides.

But one side wants to do nothing but take, while the other side has precious little to give, regardless.

And it doesn’t matter how hard an honest person works - if you were born into a minority family, or some subset of our economy that subsists on scraps, you’ll most likely always be a part of the subset that subsists on scraps. The rules were set up from day one to make sure of that. Millionaires seldom come from Appalachia or from housing projects with unaccredited elementary and secondary schools; they come from families who have connections and seed money.

Day laborers don’t have relatives in the front office looking out for them. Sick people can’t possibly work the sixty or eighty-hour work week they’d need to if they wanted to pay for both groceries and medicine. Single parents don’t have enough hours in the day to both raise their children and earn enough money to save for things like retirement and an education for their kids, and a nest egg to get them started with a down-payment on a house when they move out.

The brutal fact that underlines all this is that with very few exceptions, the wealth in this country was generated years ago by four main sources: the exploitation of slave labor, the exploitation of near-slave labor, the exploitation of natural resources, and blatant war profiteering. This wealth has been passed down through inheritance - if your great-great grandparents weren’t in the financial or moral position to exploit while the exploiting was good, then you and your offspring were all pretty much shit out of luck. And they’re isn’t a damn thing you could ever do about it.

We did have one brief shining moment - right after WWII - when our country managed to change that core reality. FDR, Truman and Eisenhower each created a layer of effective social safety nets (i.e, the New Deal, Social Security, the GI Bill and government-backed mortgages for returning WWII vets) that all worked together to help create the most affluent middle class the world has ever seen. For a little while, anyway. Sadly enough, most all of these programs have been slowly dismantled in the thirty years since Reagan took first took office.

“Trickle-Down Economics” was never anything more than code for “let’s go back to doing things the way we used to do them.” Giving more money to rich people doesn’t spur employment, doesn’t help the sick or broken, and doesn’t give hope to anyone not already near the top of the economic food chain. It only makes wealthy people even wealthier.

And true, a few people have come from nowhere and built empires - but they are very very few and far between. Most kids today won’t ever experience the same standard of living their parents knew, no matter how smart or hard they work.

Pointing out that the game is rigged isn’t the same thing as complaining or giving up, or it doesn’t mean you are willing to settle for scraps. It means you aren’t willing to play the game anymore. It’s actually a tiny little act of rebellion against an unfair system. And I think we need a lot more of it.

Go Home Productions - Don’t Hold Back, Sweet Jane Other...

Tue, 29 May 2012 06:18:00 -0400

Go Home Productions - Don’t Hold Back, Sweet Jane

Other people, they gotta work.

One of my favorite mashups ever. Chemical Brothers, Lou Read, even some late-eighties U2. And a little bit behind the beat, just how I like it.