Banks assert the right to the same profits. Why not us?
Profits, Not Corporations
Ted Rall
Ted Rall is a syndicated political cartoonist for Andrews McMeel Syndication and WhoWhatWhy.org and Counterpoint. He is a contributor to Centerclip and co-host of "The Final Countdown" talk show on Radio Sputnik. He is a graphic novelist and author of many books of art and prose, and an occasional war correspondent. He is, recently, the author of the graphic novel "2024: Revisited."
10 Comments. Leave new
Very brilliantly presented. I’ve been wrestling with this issue since Obama’s “Credit Card Bill of Rights” or whatever the hell he was calling it. Experts said that banks would make up for lost interest revenue with additional fees and I knew they were right. I love this strip because it makes the whole idea seem so preposterous. Ah, how fun it would be to charge people fees and give ourselves raises to make up for lost revenue indeed. Pretty arrogant for banks to insist on the same profits in the bad economy they helped create. The bank transfer day mentioned in the NY times article you referenced is a great idea. Too bad I’m already with a credit union myself.
I like it – LOL – We should also declare war on ourselves and then we can spends billions on rebuilding our infrastructure – works for Iraq, huh?
Mr. Rall, I have to tell you that I am seriously concerned for your safety and welfare. I believe you must be taking some precautions to protect yourself. The world needs you alive and free if we are to succeed in saving our future. Strong, articulate voices of reason are incredibly scarce. I’m afraid some nut will take it upon himself to kill a “traitor” or the federal government will decide you are becoming too dangerous and make you disappear.
@Jack: Thank you for your concern, Jack. It is much appreciated. Whatever happens, I have had a fun and interesting life and I have enjoyed it. I hope I get to remain on this earth longer, if for no other reason than to see through the uprising I have been waiting my entire life. I will say, however, that I would rather die than silence myself.
The cartoons like this are you at your best. It is like a mini op-ed (and more informative then many full op-eds) and is both hilarious and educational as you reveal the absurdities that we have come to accept by turning things around. This one almost ranks up here with one of my old favorites, “Terror Wars”: http://rall.com/wp-content/gallery/political2002/6-8-02.jpg
Ted: Have you been following the NPR reports about different generations’ political attitudes(from Pew polling)?
The one about Gen X is interesting(to me, who was born 12/64):
https://www.npr.org/2011/11/05/142023347/generation-x-divided-over-2012-candidates
Gosh darn, Ted – No wonder we are having these problems – the average american is lost in a hailstorm of sound-bites and bullshit. When you are up to your neck in just paying the ridiculous prices for healthcare, transportation, housing, etc. – then how can you find the motivation or even the time to research past the lies and have a chance to respond to anything as an informed person?
I know, like the Fireside comedians once said, “We aren’t just betting on your ignorance, we’re counting on it!”.
Tell me Ted – has there ever been a time when it Wasn’t like this?
The difference between the situation described in the second and the sixth frames is that while the BA can call upon the political power that originates in the barrels of the guns at the command of the US government, but the chap in the sixth frame must rely entirely upon DIY….
Henri
@Ted: I believe you. You’ve proven that by being unembedded in Afghanistan, though you pointed out why that is safer than traveling with US troops. I just know I would at least be sharply aware of my surroundings when in public. With all that Obama has done it seems to me the next inevitable step is to start rounding up political dissenters. He wouldn’t even have to declare them terrorists; he could just let everyone wonder what happened to them. I’d think with the way everyone seems to know the story of Hitler’s gradual repression of the Jews they would realize the process that creates totalitarian states. If we let Obama murder anyone we could be next.
I watched one of your speeches in DC. It was very well done of course. I especially liked the parts about how revolutionaries are always weaker than their opponents and how settling never works. This is probably the most important thing people need to hear. I believe people who think they can work with the system are as big a problem as the system itself. This is why “Whimsical” is mistaken: the Left is irrelevant because they refuse confrontation not because they are “unrealistic.”
fees are an amazing way to steal money. Instead of charging something upfront and being done, you get infinite income, its pretty brilliant.