America is being sold piece by piece. Much of our Federal and State infrastructure is now owned by foreign governments and multi-national corporations so that they can turn around and make a profit off of Americans using them. America has become little more than a flea market for the rest of the world, who are awash with American dollars because of the "unregulated" free-trade policies of the Republican party.  

Below the fold is an Article written by Thom Hartmann in 2006. I was going to write a diary myself on this subject, but found this article that says it better than I ever could. I have included it in it's entirety. I take no credit for anything Mr. Hartmann wrote, but I DO completely agree with this well written article and his sentiments.

Many corporations have found themselves in a difficult situation regarding the Beijing Olympics. China's human rights record, in particular, regardint Tibet, is less then stellar. As a result, some corporations have decided that associating themselves with the Olympics is bad business. All it will take is one or two protesters to make a statement the entire world will see... and it could be one that will damage the corporate brand.

Doing my usually Saturday morning rounds: First Costco for the necessities, then the grocery store for the few luxurious items that are better or have a better selection from Stop & Shop; bananas, red bliss potatoes, cereal.

I buy some cereal at Costco, but one of my little luxuries is Stop & Shop "Nutty Nuggets."  They are a generic version of Grapenuts.

I adore Grapenuts, but at $3.49 per box, there's no way, especially when Nutty Nuggets is $2.00 per box.

Today Nutty Nuggets wasn't there.  Neither was the store-brand All-Bran, Total, or other generics.  There was a store-brand Cheerios (Oaty-Os), Store-brand Frosty Flakes, but that was about it for generics in the cereal aisle.

First Diary here, I could have written several rants throughout and about the primary season but I feel what I want to say about that has been said, and probably in a much more eloquent fashion by some of my friends here.

Ever wonder where things go from your chain clothing stores after they fail to sell from a clearance?  To be fair, I only single out Hot Topic because I have a confirmed source, this is probably standard policy for many stores.

I once again heard the President talking as if the ills of the American Economy will be cured if we all run to the mall with the $600.00 being sent out in May.  

I think maybe this man is completely delusional at this point.  does he not realize that food costs 4x more than it did 2 years ago, Gas is up from 1.30 to 3.29, my electric bill went from 350.00 a month to 1200.00 a month.  

Hmmm, so I went and checked on the Presidential WebSites...

This is no doubt, the most important, overlooked excerpt from Obama speech on race. It answers the larger question: Who is America's real enemy?

Please, I am in no way belittling the Iraq War, which I feel is a horror, or our courageous troops whom I greatly admire. These socio-economic battles are normally referred to as class wars. In addition, if we had not lost the class war, we would not be fighting the Iraq War because we would never have elected George W. Bush who believes in welfare for the wealthy.

Actually, the war is over. There was a class war; however, it doesn’t seem that the most of middle and lower class were aware that it happened. Using a very slick argument of "fairness," the wealthiest Americans, mostly Republicans, made sure that it stayed under the radar of most middle class people. Rather, I should say the lower class people because the middle class has joined the lower class; I guess that’s the price of defeat and the Republican idea of "fairness."

I have often struggled to frame in words, my view of all that has happened in the Bush years, from 9/11 to the present day. I have failed to do so in numerous discussions, diaries etc. So I have essentially thrown in the towel trying to gather all that has transpired, and instead I have turned to the medium of music.

Dearest Residents of the Buckeye State,

As reported this past Sunday in the NYTimes business section, Monsanto's sales of Posilac have been dropping off recently.  So guess where they're turning for relief now?  That's right, your very own Ohio Department of Agriculture.  (See below for the details.)

I manage our activism efforts here at CREDO Action (from Working Assets), and have been working with shirah and some other activists in recent weeks to stop Monsanto's plans state-by-state.  (Shirah, by the way, has an excellent diary posted today on media coverage of this issue... here.)

I know that what I have to say in this diary will be unpopular with some, not only about Kucinich and the regard he is held in by Markos and some of the front-pagers, as well as some of the "back-pagers" (a take on backbenchers, a term used in the parliamentary system), but on the general effectiveness of a divided progressive blogosphere and how that dampens our ability to be effective and influence the Democratic Party as well as the overall political chess game.

Another instance of insurance industry corruption. Mandates are the insurance industry's dream, not an actual solution to the problem. It's time to put power back into the hands of doctors--where it has always belonged.

To most Americans, the signs that our economy is taking a dive is stressful and worrisome news. But to Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott, it's time to celebrate! According to the Economist article "Recession is good news for Wal-Mart," the retail behemoth is banking on the theory that consumers will be so down and out that they'll have scavenge Wal-Mart for basic goods.

You know, all those terrible liberals keep complaining that Mr Bush is consistently failing to look after his people.  They want welfare handouts, and lots of them.  Well, all you liberals, Mr Bush has heard your pleas and in his budget is to hand out $184.2bn in tax payers money, specifically for welfare.

CORPORATE welfare, that is - not citizen welfare.

I Think that I Shall Never See
By David Glenn Cox

I think that I shall never see
a site as lovely as a tax rebate, for free
A partisan platform based on greed
by giving more to those who don't need
To rescue the economy is not a mistake
but throwing life jackets to those not in the lake?

John Edwards took what had to be a most painful step today. He withdrew from the race for the presidency. A son of a poor mill-worker, an incredibly successful trial lawyer, a decent senator for one term, he was a surprise pick for the VP slot, and in the process, he apparently got the bug. That rare, incurable, and sometimes deadly virus labeled the 1600 Penn-Ave bug.

  One of the things that has clearly outraged Americans everywhere is the disgusting spectacle of CEOs legally looting their companies with pay and pensions that are absolutely outrageous. For a long time, a collective Marie Antoinette cry from the CEO suites spilled out that, while a few CEOs pocket massive amounts of money, workers should just eat cake--if they can get it at a low enough price at Wal-Mart--rather than expect wages that keep pace with inflation, decent health care and pensions. Now, things may be shifting--just a tad.

This diary is a cross-post from my blog.

Photo Source

Ask yourself, is there anything fair about American politics today, as manifested in the current Primary Campaign?  Most especially under the stranglehold of Corporate (as in consolidated) Media!  

Only one candidate in this race has identified the root problem at work in our Country, where progress moves at a snail’s pace or not at all: corporate greed.  That has been John Edwards.

So, corporate Media, is doing all in its corporate power to kill off John Edwards’ candidacy.  They feed the line of inevitability in one race only, on the Democratic side, night and day, and they did this from Day 1, but most especially since Iowa, when Edwards placed second.