In North Carolina, the closing of the Pope Puppet show, means a break before the inevitable storm of more of the same policies Pope’s puppets passed in the past six months.
Even people who report on North Carolinian politics regularly acknowledge the dizzying pace by which Republicans rammed ideology driven laws through means it will take a while to figure out just how much damage they’ve done.
The daily events of this session make a Shakespearian Tragedy look like a Midsummer Night’s Dream.
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When one looks at each law passed by the Pope Republicans in isolation, it’s easy to dismiss them as bad, but not tragic. When taken together, North Carolina is a blue print of what a Koch Empire would look like. Saying it isn’t pretty would be an understatement.
Republicans don’t care if North Carolina’s children can read – let alone compete in a world of technology and science. The important thing is the understaffed and under resourced public schools will still be open and as Jerry Tillman put it: “the schools won’t close they will operate.” Well because Jerry Tillman said it, I feel better.
The wet kiss they gave to charter schools by redistributing funds previously allotted to the public education system means North Carolina’s children will learn important things – like creationism. Corporate owned charter schools don’t need to worry about meeting standards established by the State Board of education because literacy and book larnin are dangerous things. They produce dangerous liberals. No, it’s much better for children to understand that intellectual curiosity, science, critical thinking and facts are evil. They’ll be taught that they can pray away the gay, speaking tongues will cure all ailments, and Art Pope is the personification of God. Ok, this is hyperbolic.
The point is education in North Carolina was sold to corporations for whom the priority is to train a compliant work force. It worked out so well for the Austro-Hungarian Empire. What could possibly go wrong?
The Pope crowd gave a long wet kiss to the NRA with a law that encourages gun owners to provide their concealed weapons with a more fulfilling life as they will be allowed at restaurants, playgrounds and in bars. Of course, taking a concealed weapon to a playground means nothing unless you can stand your ground the way George Zimmerman did. In reality, Art Pope gave Wayne Lapierre two long wet kisses this session.
In the name of manifesting poverty because hungry peasants can’t fight back, Pope Republicans introduced and passed a “tax reform” package that requires people subsisting on an income of $12,000 to subsidize the $10,000 payout from this law alone that people earning $1 million per year so desperately need.
The governor aka to Art Pope and his puppers as junior partner was gleeful as he explained what flattening the State’s tax rates would mean for those creatures the right likes to call “job creators”
I firmly believe that this reform package will prove to be critically important to growing North Carolina’s economy and getting people back to work. This tax reform package puts more money in families’ budgets and will restore confidence for North Carolina businesses. Because of this package, job creators will think about relocating to our great state.
Less money for people at the bottom of the economic ladder means even less to spend. We know this because it’s been tried before over and over again. Even under the McBudget’s assumption that people have two full time jobs and health insurance costs $20 a month, peasants pay for food, heat, childcare and education with love and fresh air. Well okay, only love since fresh air impedes the job creators. What could go wrong?
Pope’s puppets gave themselves an 8% pay raise paid for by cutting unemployment benefits If you don’t work you don’t eat and we all know that unemployment is such an attractive lifestyle “choice”.
Obviously, with policies as popular as these Pope’s Republicans can’t rely on persuading voters to elect them. So they passed a voter suppression bill, designed to remind “you people” who are black or brown, poor and young or old that voting means buying ID that wasn’t needed to vote before. Hey, if you really care about your vote, you can do without that mythical $20 a month health insurance plan, or stop wasting money on food or ‘lectricity. Better yet, stay home and leave the important decision making to privileged white men. In the world according to Pope, that’s the way it should be.
Pay close attention to those informative ads promoting Republicans. You don’t need to know who paid for them or if maybe they got a pay-off from Pope and his puppets.
Those greeters from the voter integrity project are really just there to make you feel welcomed and keep you honest – especially if you are black, brown, poor, old, young or just look like one of those suspicious people who would vote for the “Democrat” party.
When the Governor said he would sign a bill restricting abortion, he had the chutzpah to claim that he wasn’t breaking a campaign promise to veto any law that allows the state to interfere with women’s personal health care choices.
I guess he didn’t notice the few hard to detect hints in the bill.
Like the title of Section two: LIMITS ON ABORTION FUNDING UNDER HEALTH INSURANCE PLANS OFFERED THROUGH A HEALTH INSURANCE EXCHANGE OR BY
LOCAL GOVERNMENTS or the part that says:
(a) Pursuant to the authority granted to states under 42 U.S.C. § 18023(a), no qualified
health plan offered through an Exchange created under Subchapter III of Chapter 157 of Title
42 of the U.S. Code and operating within this State shall include coverage for abortion services.
He doesn’t think a law restricting insurance coverage in any way restricts women’s financial access to reproductive rights. He doesn’t think a law designed to close all but one of North Carolina’s reproductive care clinics somehow restricts women’s access to reproductive care.
McCrory is lying, of course the fact that his lips are moving are a big hint Or he recently fell off a turnip truck or Rick Perry slipped him some of Texas’ version of a Koch brew known to have debilitating effects on rational thinking.
Actually, McCrory did have a Rick Perryesque slip up while announcing he would sign this bill.
…And that’s what we wanted to work on, vocational training in the State Personnel Act, strategic mobility formula, all had to do with job efficiency. The Three E’s, efficiency of government, education, and… um… education.
Some things you just have to hear to fully appreciate. Just click on listen.
Maybe McCrory is so stoned on Texas Tea he doesn’t realize that Pope’s Puppets look upon him as a junior partner in “their” government.
Oh and that doesn’t include another law Pope’s Republicans passed before running out the back door. McCrory is concerned about their environmental law because of the regulations on landfills and billboards. One would hope that McCrory’s concerns are about the effects of allowing garbage trucks to leak, but that would entail caring about the health and well-being of North Carolinians. Besides you know whar taking in other state’s garbage means. Swimming pools, movie stars.
These and other freedoms from regulations to protect the environment are just the incentive “job creators” need. So what if it leaves the poor without even fresh air to pay for things like food excluded from the McBudget.
If this session wasn’t enough to convince the North Carolinians who voted for these clowns to give them a permanent vacation, I don’t know what will.
Image from War is a Crime
Former contributor.
