Letters Letters
Compassionate Austerity New York City Ari Berman’s characterization of Pete Peterson as a proponent of austerity at all costs in “How the Austerity Class Rules Washington” [Nov. 7] is inaccurate and misleading. Peterson has stated many times that given the economic situation, we need a plan that stimulates short-term job creation while setting reasonable goals to reduce our long-term structural deficits. In addition to recognizing the need to create jobs now, the foundation and Peterson have consistently stated that our fiscal challenges must be addressed in a compassionate way that maintains a strong safety net. One of the primary goals of the foundation is to ensure that Social Security and other key safety net programs are strong, solvent and secure for future generations—particularly for America’s most vulnerable populations. While the article suggests that the Peterson Foundation funded the Bowles-Simpson fiscal commission, a more accurate and responsible description would have noted that the foundation was one of a diverse group of organizations (including progressives) that donated staff and expertise to the commission. The foundation did not provide monetary support to the commission. The primary mission of the Peterson Foundation is to raise public awareness 
about debt and deficit issues, not to advocate specific solutions. We are pleased to have voices from across the political spectrum engage in this important conversation. That is why we are proud to provide grants to organizations with a broad range of opinions, including the Center for American Progress, the Economic Policy Institute and the Roosevelt Institute Campus Network. The foundation and Pete have publicly stated that given the magnitude of our fiscal challenges, no single solution can address these imbalances. All options, including tax increases, reductions in defense spending and a review of benefits for better-off Americans, must be part of a comprehensive reform plan. The foundation and Pete are dedicated to assisting with the development of a bipartisan consensus that puts the country on a more secure and sustainable fiscal path. If we fail to do so, we will put our safety net programs, our economic future and the future living standards of Americans at risk. LORETTA UCELLI, vice president Peter G. Peterson Foundation Berman Replies Washington, D.C. There is nothing inaccurate in my article or in my portrayal of the Peterson Foundation. I wrote that Peterson-backed groups had staffed the Bowles-Simpson commission and organized town hall events on its behalf, underwriting what was purported to be an independent government entity. The November 11, 2010, Washington Post reported that “the salaries of two senior staffers, Marc Goldwein and Ed Lorenzen, are paid by private groups that have previously advocated cuts to entitlement programs. Lorenzen is paid by the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, while Goldwein is paid by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, which is also partly funded by the Peterson group.” Furthermore, the Post noted that America Speaks, which has received nearly $2.4 million from the Peterson Foundation, organized a twenty-city electronic town hall meeting for the commission in June 2010. “This is a truly unusual event,” added Mother Jones, “because it marks the first time a presidential commission’s activities are financed by a private group that has long been lobbying the government on the very subjects the commission is supposed to ‘study.’” The foundation did give $200,000 apiece to the Center for American Progress, the Economic Policy Institute and the Roosevelt Institute Campus Network (with grants to the conservative Heritage Foundation and American Enterprise Institute); but that money pales in comparison with the millions it has donated to center-right groups like the Concord Coalition and the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. Finally, one wonders about the Peterson Foundation’s commitment to “a strong safety net,” given that Peterson has called Social Security a “publicly subsidized vacation” and has spent a fortune distributing inaccurate and alarmist statistics about the program’s impending collapse [see William Greider, “The Man Who Wants to Loot Social Security,” March 2, 2009]. The fact is, the Social Security trust fund is fully solvent until 2038, according to the Congressional Budget Office, and does not add a dime to the deficit. The most pressing problem facing the country right now is not the debt and deficit or the so-called “entitlement” programs but our massive unemployment crisis. Putting people back to work is the best way to boost the economy and reduce the deficit. ARI BERMAN Wrong, You Writhing, Whingeing Wimps Sevierville, Tenn. I am compelled to respond to letters in the November 7 edition regarding this president. To the writer who wrote “I have no clue what the man stands for, what he believes in”: he obviously stands for and believes in a multitude of things the Republican/Tea Party doesn’t. For me, that is good enough. To the person who wrote “We were promised a Churchill, but we got a Chamberlain”: Churchill didn’t have his citizenship, religion and patriotism questioned; wasn’t black and wasn’t dealt a lousy, lazy governing body. This president is a model of decency, composure and intelligence leading a country that still loves to hate. To the person who wrote “Needless to say to most Nation readers, I am beyond disappointed”: disappointment doesn’t begin to describe the feeling I would have if this president isn’t re-elected. We are damned fortunate to have this man and his family in the White House. My question to all Nation readers is, What hopes and dreams does the alternative bring? Proud to say, without regrets or reservations, Obama 2012. WILLIAM DAYTON Duluth, Minn. I’m so astonished and infuriated by the whingeing tone of those who are “disappointed” in President Obama. He didn’t bring peace to the Middle East. He didn’t reverse climate change. He didn’t create jobs; he didn’t reduce the deficit; he didn’t close Guantánamo; and he shouldn’t have killed Osama bin Laden like that or interfered in Libya. He shouldn’t have let the Tea Party take the House, and he lost the filibuster-proof lead in the Senate. All by himself. What is wrong with you people? You’ll stay home and let the Perrys and the Romneys and the Cains run our nation? Please, please don’t do this. NORBERT HIRSCHHORN, MD Weathersfield, Vt. So Obama can’t walk on water. Boo-hoo. Are we going to vote for whichever clown the GOP chooses to oppose him? Or not at all (which will have the same effect)? CHRIS HARRIS Springfield, Va. Many liberals are so irate, they won’t vote for Obama in 2012. So, from the rest of us: many thanks for President Romney and his neocon foreign policy loons, his right-wing Supreme Court picks, Medicare vouchers, Social Security cuts, a terrified Hispanic community and so much more. KATHRYN THOMAS
Nov 16, 2011 / Our Readers and Ari Berman
Puzzle No. 3216 Puzzle No. 3216
ACROSS 1 Divine words in Paris: “The narrow includes the revolutionary” (3,5,2,5) 9 Praised possible accompaniment for Rhapsody in Blue (7) 10 Fashionable mission in Texas and Delaware (1,2,4) 11 Interlope rudely to provide fulfillment (9) 12 Loose relative is beheaded (5) 13 Former trolley range is beyond city walls (10) 15 Exploited American editor (4) 19 Sweet potato turnover with a bit of oil dressing (4) 20 Scam that is upsetting wheezers (10) 22 Passage I’ll read aloud (5) 24 Rumors of AAA service for weapons plant (9) 26 Hand Toni scrambled eggs first (7) 27 Having eaten a donut, interrogate a thug (7) 28 Distorting a quote, liar with fifth course of action: one that divides the world in half (10,5) DOWN 1 Lame bears healed with high-energy radiation (5,4) 2 Breaking the plate: the end of Barry’s silent communication (9) 3 Type of flying moth, and others (3,5) 4 Back in Burundi, I’d arrayed bones (5) 5 Woman’s laundry list item: indoctrinate (9) 6 Fifty engineers, originally with disease, form association (6) 7 Ruminant swallows large crow (5) 8 Not us! Even at first, this puzzle doesn’t have one (5) 14 Tragic air mourns a group of stars (4,5) 16 Trace transgression involving a bit of chicanery up to Afghanistan’s capital (9) 17 Hopeless 2, for example, in E-trade debacle (9) 18 Forged diploma, including registrar’s initial, in postbox (4,4) 21 Concede sister’s burden, and stop (6) 22 Commotion about love (5) 23 University supporters back confusion (5) 25 Returning soldier’s mother produces letter from Greece (5) ACROSS 1 MOUNTS THE LENS 9 AL(COHO)L + [v]IC[e] 10 “there” 11 ICI + CLE[ver] 12 2 defs. 14 anag. 15 CHE(DDA)R (add rev.) 17 TUN + IS + IA (nut rev.) 19 A + U + PAIRS (Paris anag., &lit.) 22 hidden 24 CO(R)PSE 26 anag. 27 [l]IMIT + ATIVE (Evita rev.) 28 PRONOUN + CEMENT DOWN 1 MOC KING 2 [c]UPHOLDERS 3 2 defs. 4 anag. 5 E(XT)RA (TX rev.) 6 rev. hidden 7 S + PRAYER 8 M + ALIGN 13 ESCA + LATI(O)N (case anag.) 16 anag. 17 T.A. + K(E)NUP (punk rev.) 18 N(ONZE)RO (Ron anag.) 20 I(NPR)I + NT 21 rev. 23 initial letters 25 2 defs.
Nov 16, 2011 / Joshua Kosman and Henri Picciotto
Occupy Movement Slowly Growing on California Campuses Occupy Movement Slowly Growing on California Campuses
A survey of the Occupy Colleges movement in California.
Nov 15, 2011 / StudentNation / Brandon Hensley
Occupy Wall Street Debates Next Steps Occupy Wall Street Debates Next Steps
Judge Michael Stallman ruled that the occupiers have not “demonstrated that they have a First Amendment right to remain in Zuccotti Park.”
Nov 15, 2011 / Rachel Signer
A Raid on the First Amendment: New York’s Assault on Press Freedom A Raid on the First Amendment: New York’s Assault on Press Freedom
Reporters covering the eviction of Occupy Wall Street were arrested and restrained from doing their jobs.
Nov 15, 2011 / John Nichols
Occupy Everywhere on November 17 Occupy Everywhere on November 17
With last night's surprise NYPD clearing of Liberty Plaza, the already-planned International Day of Action on November 17 will grow far larger than it would have been otherwise.&nb...
Nov 15, 2011 / Peter Rothberg
Melissa Harris-Perry: Louisiana’s Wetlands Are a National Concern Melissa Harris-Perry: Louisiana’s Wetlands Are a National Concern
In Louisiana, wetlands erosion and an overall lack of infrastructure have created a situation in which the state is incredibly vulnerable to disasters such as Hurricane Katrina six...
Nov 15, 2011 / Press Room
At Zuccotti Park, Police Protect the One Percent At Zuccotti Park, Police Protect the One Percent
Attacks on peaceful protesters rarely make the police or government look anything but weak and cowardly.
Nov 15, 2011 / Laurie Penny
Wisconsin Wants Governor Walker Out Wisconsin Wants Governor Walker Out
In the next sixty days, progressive activists will need to obtain 540,000 signatures in order to force a special election—and recall Governor Walker once and for all.
Nov 15, 2011 / Press Room
Surprise Police Raid Clears Out Zuccotti Park Surprise Police Raid Clears Out Zuccotti Park
An eyewitness report.
Nov 15, 2011 / StudentNation / Ari Lipsitz and Jocelyn Silver