Koch brothers hide as masses unite

The earth and democracy aren’t dying. They’re being killed—and the people killing them are next door to this hotel.

Koch Brothers

Know what’s funny? “Koch” is pronounced “Coke.” Know what isn’t funny?  Today, in Palm Springs, California, the Koch brothers are meeting in secret to plot the final stages of their wildly successful campaign to destroy representative democracy.

Oh, and the planet too.

I’m here with some other people and we are going to try to stop them. But we’ll need your help.

First you’ll need to know who the Kochs are, what their motives have been, and how they’ve gotten away with this for so long.

Then you need to tell everyone you know.

These men are highly effective sociopaths who have been on an unchecked spree for years. A description of their trail of carnage contains all the major elements of todays public discourse. Climate change has been made politically unaddressable by their meticulous misinformation campaign; they’ve divided (and effectively conquered) the American people through by creating the so-called Tea Party; and to secure their long-term profits they’ve even succeeded in legalizing unlimited corporate spending in elections.

There’s nothing unusual about billionaires messing around with politics. It’s been going since before billionaire became the new millionaire. But the Kochs are special. Professional nonpartisan watchdog Charles Lewis from the Center for Public Integrity, puts it this way: “The Kochs are on a whole different level. There’s no one else who has spent this much money…They have a pattern of lawbreaking, political manipulation, and obfuscation. I’ve been in Washington since Watergate, and I’ve never seen anything like it. They are the Standard Oil of our times.” (Read the amazing New Yorker expose.)

Why has the public been slow to embrace the reality of the Koch stranglehold? How did Charles and David pull this off?

That’s where the climate comes in.

Koch Industries makes it’s billions, in large part, by putting carbon in the air. Charles and David, and the folks they meet with at conferences like the one up the street from this hotel, are smart businessmen, so one day, they looked ahead and said, “What could possibly stop us from putting carbon in the air?” And they played out some scenarios:

1) If the little people start listening to the top 80 scientific bodies in the world, which are warning them that the very livability of their planet is in serious danger, they’ll put their support behind climate legislation, which will cut into Koch Industries profits. Solution: Manufacture a debate. Dilute the public discourse with misinformation.  This seed of doubt will defeat US climate legislation for lack of broad support, thus sabotaging the United Nations attempts to agree on a course of action. UPDATE: This was easier than we thought!

2) When the little people figure out that we are killing them and lying to them for profit, they will get mad. They’ll start running candidates that promise to pass laws and regulations that will cut into Koch Industries’ profits. Solution use our money to defeat those candidates. Problem: It’s illegal. Solution: get the Supreme Court to make it legal. Create a group and call it “Citizens United.”  Argue that since corporations were declared “persons” in a clerical error a while back they should therefore be entitled to freedom of speech, which includes donating money to political campaigns. Note: It’s a bit of a stretch–so bring justices Scalia and Thomas to Palm Springs and treat ’em right.  UPDATE: This was easier than we thought!

3) When the little people realize that prosperity for Koch Industries does not mean prosperity for them, they will point their rage against us and the pro-corporate representatives we’ve installed. If united against us, no amount of campaigning could overcome their sheer numerical superiority. Solution: co-opt populist outrage and turn them against each other. Organize disenfranchised republicans through front groups and call it the Tea Party. Overplay the conflict in the media. The Left will try to find “balance” and move more to the right. And build a higher fence around our resort in Palm Springs. UPDATE: They might be on to us.

It’s time to call it like it is. It’s time to admit that we are being attacked, that this is a pitched battle and we are losing.  Their team needs us to fight for the sides they’ve set up for us. But if you want to know what the real game is, look for the score: the richest 1% of our country own 70% of the wealth.

I have to run. The Uncloaking the Kochs and Quarantine the Kochs actions are about to start. I’ll keep you posted. In the meantime, let’s start shine some light on this. Share and repost.