Russell Brand lets rip on Newsnight

[Daz]

Hadn't seen this before and not usually a fan of Brand in any way, infact, I tend to avoid his nonsense at all times usually.

That being said, I see socially and politically that I agree with him in totality with one proviso being that a revolution won't occur in the U.K. and probably not anywhere else in the western world. Too many ordinary people have too many ordinary things that they would be afraid to jeopardise losing. Think about what an uprising would involve, then think how you feel about risking everything in your personal private world. It will never happen as long as enough people have just enough to lose to make the perpetuation of the status quo worthwhile.

I also don't think we have capitalism anywhere on the global stage, we have a reverse and inverted socialism whereby the corporations and multi-nationals are the ones to receive the government investment and assistance. In fact, the reason the western world bailed the banks out is for fear of people losing just enough to make an uprising more worthwhile in the lives and minds of the population.

[PigFish]

This talk about Democracy is not factually correct. The word is used too often by politicians to make it seem like we all have an equal say. The United States is a Republic. We elect Representatives to two houses of Congress to represent our needs and wants. Because of this roughly 535 men and women (4 seats currently vacant) make the decisions, pass the laws and spend the tax revenue for the other 317,000,000. However, they have an army of underlings that actually write the laws, give them advice and basically tell them how to act. The fact is the largest population centers and most populace states have more power and influence than the smaller less populace states. The best example of this happens every single time there is a Presidential election. Without a question the winner of the election will come down to who can take Florida, Ohio or both. California (the most populace state in the nation) always goes Democrat and Texas (the second most populace state) always goes Republican. The political system in this country is starting to breakdown because the Government is growing so large that it's influence has exceeded it's role laid out by the founding father's. It is trampling on States rights more and more often, telling people on a nationwide level that you have to own insurance, is borrowing more and money to pay for programs that are not funded with current revenue and basically creating a country that can't function without it's assistance.

As a Republic of 50 states and several territories the United States was supposed to function as a group of semi-autonomous entities that worked together for the common good of the people. Today the country works for the common good of the Federal Government and it's influence over the populace is increasing exponentially every election cycle. The agendas of the parties now trump the good of the people. The retention and expansion of political power is now the goal of those who we have elected and not the well being of the people. What we have today is a two party system that can't even get a budget passed without having to increase a debt limit further into the Trillions of Dollars. It's a disgrace.

So when I see a guy like Russell Brand, who came from poverty to become a world famous actor, trying to represent a under served class of people in a place much more leveraged than the US I feel for him. He feels completely helpless in the system he is in. He may be a millionaire, but he feels helpless in that he can't see a way to change the system without completely destroying it. And in a way he is correct. The power has been so consolidated for so long how likely is it that those who have it will be willing to give it up without force? Look at the civil wars in the Middle East. Those countries erupted into civil conflict because the populace finally said ENOUGH and burned it all down. Those in power in the US and Europe don't ever think that could ever happen to us because we are too educated and civilized. But I would disagree. Push people down too much, give them so little and combine that with the ability to see on a daily basis the excess that they can't achieve . . .

I like this mate, bravo, well written.

Cheers.

[PigFish]

Nobody who believes in freedom of speech would argue with that. Funny how socialist governments in practice deny the very same freedoms to their subjugated populace. Think of communist Russia, Cuba, China (particularly pre Den Xiaopeng), North Korea, Pol Pot's Cambodia, the list goes on. And Brand's "revolutionary" views involving a massive redistribution of wealth and hard left socialism has been tried and tested and failed to deliver "freedoms" whilst the population starve.

Hear, hear!

[Jeremy Festa]

Man on fire

[tmac77]

LOL "could even be a relationship with west ham united" @ 9:50