In article  ,
"Ben"
 wrote:

>
> Deborah Terreson wrote:
>> In article  , Joe
>>   wrote:
>>
>> > On Sat, 02 Apr 2005 12:47:54 -0500, "Deborah Terreson"
>> >  wrote:
>> >
>> > [From: Turin's Tirade's®]
>> >>In article

> , "Turin"
>> >> wrote:
>> >>
>> >>> "MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN"
>> >>>
>> >>> Face it.  America's heyday is over...
>> >>>
>> >>>
>> >>> "Come out of her, my people, that ye be not
>> >>> partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not
>> >>> of her plagues.
>> >>>
>> >>> "For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God
>> >>> hath remembered her iniquities.  Reward her even
>> >>> as she rewarded you, and double unto her double
>> >>> according to her works: in the cup which she
>> >>> hath filled fill to her double.
>> >>>
>> >>> "How much she hath glorified herself, and lived
>> >>> deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give
>> >>> her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen,
>> >>> and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.
>> >>>
>> >>>
>> >>> "Therefore shall her plagues come in one day,
>> >>> death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall
>> >>> be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the
>> >>> Lord God who judgeth her."
>> >>>
>> >>> (~Revelation 18:4-8 --- prophecy of Babylon's final
destruction)
>> >>>
>> >>>
>> >>>
>> >>>
>> >>> http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8191.htm
>> >>>
>> >>>
>> >>> America No. 1?
>> >>>
>> >>> America by the numbers
>> >>>
>> >>> by Michael Ventura
>> >>>
>> >>> 02/03/05 "ICH"  - - No concept lies more
firmly embedded in our
>> >>> national character than the notion that the USA is
"No. 1," "the
>> >>> greatest." Our broadcast media are, in essence, continuous
>> >>> advertisements for the brand name "America Is
No. 1." Any office
> seeker
>> >>> saying otherwise would be committing political
suicide. In fact,
> anyone
>> >>> saying otherwise will be labeled
"un-American." We're an
> "empire,"
>> >>> ain't we? Sure we are. An empire without a
manufacturing base. An
>> >>> empire that must borrow $2 billion a day from its
competitors in
> order
>> >>> to function. Yet the delusion is ineradicable. We're No. 1.
> Well...this
>> >>> is the country you really live in:
>> >>>
>> >>> The United States is 49th in the world in literacy
(the New York
> Times,
>> >>> Dec. 12, 2004).
>> >>>
>> >>> The United States ranked 28th out of 40 countries in
mathematical
>> >>> literacy (NYT, Dec. 12, 2004).
>> >>>
>> >>> Twenty percent of Americans think the sun orbits the earth.
> Seventeen
>> >>> percent believe the earth revolves around the sun
once a day (The
> Week,
>> >>> Jan. 7, 2005).
>> >>>
>> >>> "The International Adult Literacy Survey...found
that Americans
> with
>> >>> less than nine years of education 'score worse than
virtually all
> of
>> >>> the other countries'" (Jeremy Rifkin's superbly
documented book
> The
>> >>> European Dream: How Europe's Vision of the Future Is Quietly
> Eclipsing
>> >>> the American Dream, p.78).
>> >>>
>> >>> Our workers are so ignorant and lack so many basic skills that
> American
>> >>> businesses spend $30 billion a year on remedial training (NYT,
> Dec. 12,
>> >>> 2004). No wonder they relocate elsewhere!
>> >>>
>> >>> "The European Union leads the U.S. in...the
number of science and
>> >>> engineering graduates; public research and
development (R&D)
>> >>> expenditures; and new capital raised" (The
European Dream, p.70).
>> >>>
>> >>> "Europe surpassed the United States in the
mid-1990s as the
> largest
>> >>> producer of scientific literature" (The European
Dream, p.70).
>> >>>
>> >>> Nevertheless, Congress cut funds to the National Science
> Foundation.
>> >>> The agency will issue 1,000 fewer research grants
this year (NYT,
> Dec.
>> >>> 21, 2004).
>> >>>
>> >>> Foreign applications to U.S. grad schools declined 28 percent
> last
>> >>> year. Foreign student enrollment on all levels fell
for the first
> time
>> >>> in three decades, but increased greatly in Europe and
China. Last
> year
>> >>> Chinese grad-school graduates in the U.S. dropped 56 percent,
> Indians
>> >>> 51 percent, South Koreans 28 percent (NYT, Dec. 21,
2004). We're
> not
>> >>> the place to be anymore.
>> >>>
>> >>> The World Health Organization "ranked the
countries of the world
> in
>> >>> terms of overall health performance, and the U.S.
[was]...37th."
> In the
>> >>> fairness of health care, we're 54th. "The irony
is that the
> United
>> >>> States spends more per capita for health care than any other
> nation in
>> >>> the world" (The European Dream, pp.79-80). Pay
more, get lots,
> lots
>> >>> less.
>> >>>
>> >>> "The U.S. and South Africa are the only two
developed countries
> in the
>> >>> world that do not provide health care for all their
citizens"
> (The
>> >>> European Dream, p.80). Excuse me, but since when is
South Africa
> a
>> >>> "developed" country? Anyway, that's the
company we're keeping.
>> >>>
>> >>> Lack of health insurance coverage causes 18,000 unnecessary
> American
>> >>> deaths a year. (That's six times the number of people killed on
> 9/11.)
>> >>> (NYT, Jan. 12, 2005.)
>> >>>
>> >>> "U.S. childhood poverty now ranks 22nd, or
second to last, among
> the
>> >>> developed nations. Only Mexico scores lower"
(The European Dream,
>> >>> p.81). Been to Mexico lately? Does it look
"developed" to you?
> Yet it's
>> >>> the only "developed" country to score lower
in childhood poverty.
>> >>>
>> >>> Twelve million American families--more than 10 percent of all
> U.S.
>> >>> households--"continue to struggle, and not
always successfully,
> to feed
>> >>> themselves." Families that "had members who
actually went hungry
> at
>> >>> some point last year" numbered 3.9 million (NYT,
Nov. 22, 2004).
>> >>>
>> >>> The United States is 41st in the world in infant
mortality. Cuba
> scores
>> >>> higher (NYT, Jan. 12, 2005).
>> >>>
>> >>> Women are 70 percent more likely to die in childbirth
in America
> than
>> >>> in Europe (NYT, Jan. 12, 2005).
>> >>>
>> >>> The leading cause of death of pregnant women in this country is
> murder
>> >>> (CNN, Dec. 14, 2004).
>> >>>
>> >>> "Of the 20 most developed countries in the
world, the U.S. was
> dead
>> >>> last in the growth rate of total compensation to its
workforce in
> the
>> >>> 1980s.... In the 1990s, the U.S. average compensation
growth rate
> grew
>> >>> only slightly, at an annual rate of about 0.1
percent" (The
> European
>> >>> Dream, p.39). Yet Americans work longer hours per year than any
> other
>> >>> industrialized country, and get less vacation time.
>> >>>
>> >>> "Sixty-one of the 140 biggest companies on the
Global Fortune 500
>> >>> rankings are European, while only 50 are U.S.
companies" (The
> European
>> >>> Dream, p.66). "In a recent survey of the world's 50 best
> companies,
>> >>> conducted by Global Finance, all but one were
European" (The
> European
>> >>> Dream, p.69).
>> >>>
>> >>> "Fourteen of the 20 largest commercial banks in
the world today
> are
>> >>> European.... In the chemical industry, the European
company BASF
> is the
>> >>> world's leader, and three of the top six players are
European. In
>> >>> engineering and construction, three of the top five
companies are
>> >>> European.... The two others are Japanese. Not a single American
>> >>> engineering and construction company is included among the
> world's top
>> >>> nine competitors. In food and consumer products, Nestlé and
> Unilever,
>> >>> two European giants, rank first and second,
respectively, in the
> world.
>> >>> In the food and drugstore retail trade, two European
> companies...are
>> >>> first and second, and European companies make up five
of the top
> ten.
>> >>> Only four U.S. companies are on the list" (The
European Dream,
> p.68).
>> >>>
>> >>> The United States has lost 1.3 million jobs to China
in the last
> decade
>> >>> (CNN, Jan. 12, 2005).
>> >>>
>> >>> U.S. employers eliminated 1 million jobs in 2004 (The
Week, Jan.
> 14,
>> >>> 2005).
>> >>>
>> >>> Three million six hundred thousand Americans ran out of
> unemployment
>> >>> insurance last year; 1.8 million--one in
five--unemployed workers
> are
>> >>> jobless for more than six months (NYT, Jan. 9, 2005).
>> >>>
>> >>> Japan, China, Taiwan, and South Korea hold 40 percent of our
> government
>> >>> debt. (That's why we talk nice to them.) "By helping keep
> mortgage
>> >>> rates from rising, China has come to play an enormous and
>> >>> little-noticed role in sustaining the American
housing boom"
> (NYT, Dec.
>> >>> 4, 2004). Read that twice. We owe our housing boom to China,
> because
>> >>> they want us to keep buying all that stuff they manufacture.
>> >>>
>> >>> Sometime in the next 10 years Brazil will probably
pass the U.S.
> as the
>> >>> world's largest agricultural producer. Brazil is now
the world's
>> >>> largest exporter of chickens, orange juice, sugar, coffee, and
> tobacco.
>> >>> Last year, Brazil passed the U.S. as the world's largest beef
> producer.
>> >>> (Hear that, you poor deluded cowboys?) As a result,
while we bear
>> >>> record trade deficits, Brazil boasts a $30 billion
trade surplus
> (NYT,
>> >>> Dec. 12, 2004).
>> >>>
>> >>> As of last June, the U.S. imported more food than it exported
> (NYT,
>> >>> Dec. 12, 2004).
>> >>>
>> >>> Bush: 62,027,582 votes. Kerry: 59,026,003 votes. Number of
> eligible
>> >>> voters who didn't show up: 79,279,000 (NYT, Dec. 26, 2004).
> That's more
>> >>> than a third. Way more. If more than a third of
Iraqis don't show
> for
>> >>> their election, no country in the world will think
that election
>> >>> legitimate.
>> >>>
>> >>> One-third of all U.S. children are born out of
wedlock. One-half
> of all
>> >>> U.S. children will live in a one-parent house (CNN, Dec. 10,
> 2004).
>> >>>
>> >>> "Americans are now spending more money on gambling than on
> movies,
>> >>> videos, DVDs, music, and books combined" (The
European Dream,
> p.28).
>> >>>
>> >>> "Nearly one out of four Americans [believe] that
using violence
> to get
>> >>> what they want is acceptable" (The European Dream, p.32).
>> >>>
>> >>> Forty-three percent of Americans think torture is sometimes
> justified,
>> >>> according to a PEW Poll (Associated Press, Aug. 19, 2004).
>> >>>
>> >>> "Nearly 900,000 children were abused or
neglected in 2002, the
> last
>> >>> year for which such data are available" (USA
Today, Dec. 21,
> 2004).
>> >>>
>> >>> "The International Association of Chiefs of
Police said that cuts
> by
>> >>> the [Bush] administration in federal aid to local
police agencies
> have
>> >>> left the nation more vulnerable than ever" (USA
Today, Nov. 17,
> 2004).
>> >>>
>> >>> No. 1? In most important categories we're not even in
the Top 10
>> >>> anymore. Not even close.
>> >>>
>> >>>
>> >>> The USA is "No. 1" in nothing but weaponry,
consumer spending,
> debt,
>> >>> and delusion.
>> >>>
>> >>>
>> >>> Reprinted from the Austin Chronicle.
>> >>> www.citypages.com/databank/26/1264/article12985.asp
>> >
>> >
>> > Most of the statistic's above courtesy of that bastion of truth,
> The
>> > New York Times.
>>
>> I'd imagine that the Austin, TEXAS paper probably checked the stats -
> given
>> the Times track record in accuracy.
>
> They might have, but I wouldn't rely on it.  Newspapers are notorious
> for simply taking and running with what another paper prints.  The NYT,
> for all its flaws, is still identified as the newspaper of record in
> the industry.

Hmm. I really wish I could gind that NH Gazette item about the Times and
their ability to speak truthfully..
>
>>
>> >>
>> >>Oh yeahhhhh...
>> >>
>> >>It's gonna be fun watching the FoxNews weenies squeal like pigs in
> a poke
>> >>when the shit hits it.
>> >
>> > Turn that tube off, once in awhile, Deb.   Recently, you've posted
>> > comments on a list of sit-coms, including 'Sex and The City', and
>> > reality shows e.g., 'queer eye for the straight guy' etc., and yet
>> > watch those and many other programs.  Aren't you the one who says
> she
>> > doesn't watch Television?  Then, how can you review FoxNews?  Or,
> is
>> > it just that CNN is simply more suited to your ideology?
>>
>> Ermm. Nope. I like the Wall STreet Journal, The Atlantic and the
> scrappy
>> little New Hampshire Gazette. Fox news DOES have a website, you know,
> AND a
>> local affiliate in Boston that broadcasts some of the cable news
> stuff.
>>
>> I posted a reply to G.A.'s reference to baseball players (?) going on
> the
>> Queer Eye show. He was making note of that he'd seen an advertisement
> for
>> the players' presence on the program. That's more than I knew of it.
> I've
>> never seen an episode of Sex and the City - isn't that on HBO or
> something
>> like that? Don't have premium channels, only basic.
>>
>> >>Here's another one Turin. Last Tuesday, the WSJ ran two really
> interesting
>> >>articles - one about how China has made inroads in EVERY country in
> Africa
>> >>in the last 5 years. They are building infrastructure across the
> continent.
>> >>They are rebuilding the Nigerian rail system, have paved 80% of the
> state
>> >>highways in Rwanda, are working in over a dozen countries
> rebuilding
>> >>electrical grids and telephone services, are running the largest
> copper mine
>> >>in Zambia. And are increasing their influence while America is
> barely
>> >>hanging on, and in many cases, losing influence.
>> >>
>> >
>> > That is a stretch.  China, the 'altruistic nation'.
>>
>> I wasn't saying it was.
>> >
>> > China, who persecutes, imprison's, and torture's young AND old for
> the
>> > practice of Falun Gong.
>> >
>> > China's occupation and stranglehold on Tibet.
>>
>> :(
>
> Agreed.
>
>>
>> > China, continually rattling swords at Taiwan.
>> >
>> > China, whose industrial pollution is so bad, especially mercury, it
>> > effects us here in the U.S.

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