The War of Civility
Being born and bred below the Mason-Dixon line, I've been witness to a great deal of civil unrest over the last 55 years. This part of the country has made some remarkable strides in civil rights, however it has been very slow and painful. And we've got so far to go! The slavery the South witnessed at the hands of the powerful landowners has disappeared only to be replaced with a slavery of the corporations and their supporters. From the view I have, there is no difference other than this corporate slavery doesn't discriminate. There is much more equality in this corporate slavery. It doesn't care what race you are; it doesn't care which ethnic group you belong to; it doesn't care which religion you choose; it doesn't care which sex you happen to be; and it doesn't care what age you are. Yes, corporate slavery doesn't discriminate like the slavery of the old days prior to the "civil war". This new post-war slavery has grown to encompass all the people of the South.
Of all the poorest counties within the entire United States, 82% of them are located in the southern states. The poor of the South are primarily rural people who don't live in an urban environment with access to public transportation. Therefore our people normally live too far away to walk to required facilities so they must own a vehicle in order to reach libraries, community centers, grocery stores, or even hospitals. The rural poor are being overlooked in our nation, although they make up over eighty percent of the poor in our country. Why is that?
The South is the only region of the country where families are experiencing a drop in median wealth. Between 2001-2004, southern families incomes dropped 18.8%. And the South accounts for half of the ten worst states when we talk about foreclosures and it's bankruptcy rates are among the highest in the nation.
According to the Kids Count Survey, the South receives the worst rankings in child well-being. If we look at the ten worst states as far as child well-being is concerned, we see that nine of them are located in the South. The only southern state to rank in the top 25 is Virginia. I suppose it's because so many of our politician's families live up that way. Or perhaps I'm wrong and entirely off base? I don't think so!
There are counties in Mississippi who have infant mortality rates higher than the average third world countries. Hurricane Katrina did a lot of damage to our gulf coast and it's people, but just look at the stats and see where the real tragedy lies.
President Roosevelt declared the South to be the nation's top economic problem in our country. That was back in 1938 and his declaration is still true today! Our education and social welfare has been sacrificed to maintain privileges and profit for an elite few. This has been accomplished by politicians and the laws they helped enact. The South has been and it remains, as our country's cheap labor factory. The huge corporate factories and the majority of the Fortune 500 companies have made expensive moves to the South. Why would these corporations be willing to spend so much capital to relocate to the southern region of our country? Why? Because it's cost effective and the South's elite few who are oiled parts within our political machine have offered we the people as an incentive for the move. Our politician's have even guaranteed that organized labor will not bother the corporation's profits because they have put in place laws which make it virtually impossible to organize people into a collective of any kind.
The people are the southern elite's bargaining chip to entice corporate America into our regions. They keep us as bargaining chips by keeping the poverty level high, and the education level low! It's a wonderful world we live in down here. Some of the most beautiful people and country that you can imagine. But the beauty becomes difficult to see when you live in the dark disastrous shadow of American greed!
There was absolutely nothing civil about the war which ended in 1865 and there is absolutely nothing civil about my South now except the people themselves. This is where the power of change lies; in the people. It's our responsibility to break the chains of corporate slavery with it's unending repetitious death by greed. The foot feels heavy on the back of my neck and the dirt within my mouth is choking the very life out of me. There has to be an end to all this injustice. I have seen it in my Brother's eyes. I know it's possible and I know the people are reaching the point of change. We are all choking on the corporatist profits!
Of all the poorest counties within the entire United States, 82% of them are located in the southern states. The poor of the South are primarily rural people who don't live in an urban environment with access to public transportation. Therefore our people normally live too far away to walk to required facilities so they must own a vehicle in order to reach libraries, community centers, grocery stores, or even hospitals. The rural poor are being overlooked in our nation, although they make up over eighty percent of the poor in our country. Why is that?
The South is the only region of the country where families are experiencing a drop in median wealth. Between 2001-2004, southern families incomes dropped 18.8%. And the South accounts for half of the ten worst states when we talk about foreclosures and it's bankruptcy rates are among the highest in the nation.
According to the Kids Count Survey, the South receives the worst rankings in child well-being. If we look at the ten worst states as far as child well-being is concerned, we see that nine of them are located in the South. The only southern state to rank in the top 25 is Virginia. I suppose it's because so many of our politician's families live up that way. Or perhaps I'm wrong and entirely off base? I don't think so!
There are counties in Mississippi who have infant mortality rates higher than the average third world countries. Hurricane Katrina did a lot of damage to our gulf coast and it's people, but just look at the stats and see where the real tragedy lies.
President Roosevelt declared the South to be the nation's top economic problem in our country. That was back in 1938 and his declaration is still true today! Our education and social welfare has been sacrificed to maintain privileges and profit for an elite few. This has been accomplished by politicians and the laws they helped enact. The South has been and it remains, as our country's cheap labor factory. The huge corporate factories and the majority of the Fortune 500 companies have made expensive moves to the South. Why would these corporations be willing to spend so much capital to relocate to the southern region of our country? Why? Because it's cost effective and the South's elite few who are oiled parts within our political machine have offered we the people as an incentive for the move. Our politician's have even guaranteed that organized labor will not bother the corporation's profits because they have put in place laws which make it virtually impossible to organize people into a collective of any kind.
The people are the southern elite's bargaining chip to entice corporate America into our regions. They keep us as bargaining chips by keeping the poverty level high, and the education level low! It's a wonderful world we live in down here. Some of the most beautiful people and country that you can imagine. But the beauty becomes difficult to see when you live in the dark disastrous shadow of American greed!
There was absolutely nothing civil about the war which ended in 1865 and there is absolutely nothing civil about my South now except the people themselves. This is where the power of change lies; in the people. It's our responsibility to break the chains of corporate slavery with it's unending repetitious death by greed. The foot feels heavy on the back of my neck and the dirt within my mouth is choking the very life out of me. There has to be an end to all this injustice. I have seen it in my Brother's eyes. I know it's possible and I know the people are reaching the point of change. We are all choking on the corporatist profits!
posted by atuuschaaw at 3:48 AM
0Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home