Article: A Den of Thieves

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The money in the US Treasury belongs to the American people. It comes from our hard-earned tax dollars. Excluding social security, about 3/4 of the US annual revenue comes from individual income taxes; corporation taxes make up less than 1/4; a small amount comes from excise taxes. http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/taxfacts/tfdb/tftemplate.cfm?docid=203

With the recent tax cuts for the wealthy, a higher proportion of taxes is paid by the middle class.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/a61178-2004aug12.html

Therefore, the majority of the federal budget should go for services for the people. Instead, about half goes to the military.

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http://www.warresisters.org/piechart.htm

And who benefits? We are not at war with any other country, and no other country has threatened us. The beneficiaries are the corporations which contract with the Pentagon. Our hard earned tax dollars are being used to line the pockets of Lockheed, Boeing, Halliburton, etc.

Top Pentagon Contractors

rank company 2004 contract(billions)
1. Lockheed Martin Corp. 20.7
2. Boeing Company 17.1
3 Northrop Grumman Corp. 11.9
4 General Dynamics Corp. 9.6
5 Raytheon Company 8.5
6 Halliburton Company 8.0
7 United Technologies Corp. 5.1
8 Science Applications Int. Corp. 2.5
9 Computer Sciences Corp. 2.4
10 Humana Inc 2.4
11 Carlyle
Sources: World Policy Institute (www.worldpolicy.org) and Directorate for Information Operations and Reports, Dept. of Defense, www.dior.whs.mil/peidhome/procstat/p01/fy2004/top100.htm

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These corporations maintain huge lobbying establishments, which bribe Congresspeople by making campaign contributions. Halliburton and Carlyle are firms closely associated with Cheney and Bush.

In other words, the Executive Branch and Congress are growing rich from the unnecessary wars funded by the US taxpayer. Aside from oil, aside from politics, this is the primary reason for the invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq. The war machine is the ideal consumer- the goods are used up and have to be endlessly replaced, without creating any value. The spending is done by Congress, which responds to propaganda, bribes, and perhaps threats, with little or no oversight or accountability.

This is stealing from the people. We see essential human services cut, such as Medicaid, which provides health care for the working poor, and student loans, which enable young people to be upwardly mobile. Our infrastructure at home is deteriorating, while the rich, many of whom hold federal office, get richer and richer.

We need to recognize that our democracy has been hijacked by pirates. They even fly the pirate flag- Skull and Bones- Bush's fraternity. It's time to drive all of them out of government! We need a clean sweep, and a restoration of government of the people, for the people and by the people.

Luke 19: 45-46Jesus entered the temple area and proceeded to drive out
those who were selling things, saying to them,
It is written, My house shall be a house of prayer,
but you have made it a den of thieves.

In the name of the Prince of Peace,

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Carol Wolman