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America is not broke. Contrary to what those in power would like you to believe so that you'll give up your pension, cut your wages, and settle for the life your great-grandparents had, America is not broke. Not by a long shot. The country is awash in wealth and cash. It's just that it's not in your hands. It has been transferred, in the greatest heist in history, from the workers and consumers to the banks and the portfolios of the uber-rich. Today just 400 Americans have more wealth than half of all Americans combined. Let me say that again. 400 obscenely rich people, most of whom benefited in some way from the multi-trillion dollar taxpayer "bailout" of 2008, now have more loot, stock and property than the assets of 155 million Americans combined. If you can't bring yourself to call that a financial coup d'état, then you are simply not being honest about what you know in your heart to be true.

Wall Street Isn't Winning - It's Cheating The two-tiered justice system: an illustration 9/10/2001: Rumsfeld says $2.3 TRILLION Missing from Pentagon  The due-process-free assassination of U.S. citizens is now reality The Quiet Coup "the finance industry has effectively captured our government" What OWS is about + data behind the movement Data privacy is now extinct in the U.S. "The problem that confronts us is that every living system in the biosphere is in decline and the rate of decline is accelerating. There isn't one peer-reviewed scientific article that's been published in the last 20 years that contradicts that statement. Living systems are coral reefs. They're our climatic stability, forest cover, the oceans themselves, aquifers, water, the conditions of the soil, biodiversity. They go on and on as they get more specific. But the fact is, there isn't one living system that is stable or is improving. And those living systems provide the basis for all life." The 1% are the very best destroyers of wealth the world has ever seen The prison industry in the United States: big business or a new form of slavery? How the GOP Became the Party of the Rich: The inside story of how the Republicans abandoned the poor and the middle class to pursue their relentless agenda of tax cuts for the wealthiest one percent

For thirty years, now, Republicans have been yammering about small government, deficits, the glories of the free market, and the incompetence and wastefulness of government. It's all been a big lie, part of a well funded and cleverly executed coup d'etat, designed to enable the ultra rich and corporations to literally take power out of the hands of government and money out of the pockets of individual citizens.

Much like a very virulent flesh eating bacteria, this rich man's propaganda wont infect the majority of American intelligentsia. That is due to original adherents rapidly overcoming the severe cognitive infection via additional education.

The tax structure imposed by Washington on the US over the last half-century has seen a massive double shift of the burden of taxation: from corporations to individuals and from the richest individuals to everyone else. If the national debate wants seriously to use a term like "class war" to describe Washington's tax policies, then the reality is that the class war's winners have been corporations and the rich

As intense protests spawned by Occupy Wall Street continue to grow, it is worth asking: Why now? The answer is not obvious. After all, severe income and wealth inequality have long plagued the United States. In fact, it could reasonably be claimed that this form of inequality is part of the design of the American founding -- indeed, an integral part of it.

We feel instinctively that societies with huge income gaps are somehow going wrong. Richard Wilkinson charts the hard data on economic inequality, and shows what gets worse when rich and poor are too far apart: real effects on health, lifespan, even such basic values as trust.

Just a few more days into the festivities of the much-revered Festival of Lights, Team IAnD brings you tips on the ultimate decor - traditional Indian - rich in substance and value like the Indian culture. Check it out here...

Spaces Architects@ka evokes the spirit of the #MughalGardens in #OldDelhi with their #HeritagePark, its architectural articulation rich in #vernacular materials and #landscape elements. Check out the proposal here…

Chromed Design Studio styles #Pikkle as a #hospitality venue that oozes a #modern #contemporary aura, rich with #flamboyant colours, unique textures and #luxurious furniture, effusing a #welcoming ambience under the glowing lights. Check it out here

A treasure trove of stunning smithery unfolds at the 6500 sq ft Amrapali Museum in Jaipur - a homage to India's rich heritage of ornaments. Read to know more…

Forgo minimalism and simplicity. This Chennai Bungalow by HS Desiigns references a luxury lifestyle, highlighted by rich materials, colours, textures and furnishings. Check it out here…

Textile revivalist and principal designer at the House of Angadi innovates the traditional Kanjivaram saris into silk, linen blend Kanjivarams and khadi Kanjivaramas with a rich sprinkling of ikat-inspired designs and more. Sari enthusiasts, Ar. Brinda Somaya and interior designer and stylist Lipika Sud express their opinion on this reinterpretation of the traditional Indian garment. Read here…

Ar. Arpan Shah of Modo Designs, crafts a sensitised architectural vocabulary that responds to the nature around it; simultaneously culling out equally potent interior spaces that hold their own. Check out this home in Ahmedabad and tell us what you think…

Planet Design Studio uses clean lines, studied restraint and a monochrome palette rich in material and texture to define luxury in this bungalow in Ludhiana.

The Põltsamaa Castle complex stands as an exemplary proof of Estonia's rich architectural heritage, with each component steeped in history and purpose, while subtly embracing modernity. Studio Argus designs this stunning adaptive reuse project.