Preserving America – Dr. Steven Porter

There is nothing magical about any form of government. If a leader of a monarchy or a dictatorship is benevolent, intelligent, and moral, the society created can serve its people well. And, of course, if the leader is the opposite, the result is the opposite. Similarly, a democracy can produce a good life or a difficult one for its people … Read more about this episode...

In this program, Dr. Porter repeats the warning given to America which tried to alert the people of the nation to the forces which would destroy the democracy. He explains the warning, explains why it was true, and explains what the people of the nation need to do to avoid the death of the nation. … Read more about this episode...

In recent years, in so many ways, both state and federal rulings have flaunted the laws of the land in both spirit and in letter. Unconstitutionality abounds in many federal and state court decisions. Dr. Porter discusses instances of the abuses of government which have been eroding the Constitution and our democracy. He goes on to warn of the dangers … Read more about this episode...

In recent years, in so many ways, both state and federal rulings have flaunted the laws of the land in both spirit and in letter. Unconstitutionality abounds in many federal and state court decisions. Dr. Porter discusses instances of the abuses of goverment which have been eroding the Constitution and our democracy. He goes on to warn of the dangers … Read more about this episode...

Having railed for many weeks against the dysfunction and corruption of our government and the pitifully low level of candidates for President, in this program Dr. Porter announces that he will do more than talk the talk. He will walk the walk and run for Congress in the re-districted Pennsylvania Congressional District #3. He goes through his rationale and promises … Read more about this episode...

Left-leaning, Right-leaning, Centrist–virtually all Americans of every political stripe are unhappy with our democracy. They do not see America any longer as a model of democratic government, and most of our citizens believe that the nation is headed in the wrong direction. Why have the people of this country allowed their treasured democracy to deteriorate as it has? It is … Read more about this episode...

If you think that America–the great bastion of freedom–has elections which are fair and free, think again. The rules which allow for gerrymandering, ballot access, and the right to speak at public forums are so crooked and so manipulated, they have made a mockery of our democracy. In this program, Dr. Porter discusses the issue with facts and data rarely … Read more about this episode...

The failure of the so-called “super-committee” has brought our nation to the precipice of economic calamity. The lack of leadership of our President, the pitiful choices offered up by the Republican candidates opposing him, the dysfunction of our Congress, the lack of trust in our government and more have created a crossroads for our democracy. At this juncture, decisions of … Read more about this episode...

Thus far, with the exception of the day the public moved some money from the big banks to local ones, the occupy Wall St. movement has contented itself with protests of little significance in terms of bringing about real change. While the movement is yet young and difficult to judge, it nonetheless has not spurred the kind of action which … Read more about this episode...

The Republican election mantras truly reveal how phony the candidates are. On the one hand they claim to want to help small business. On the other they rail against any national health care system as being some kind of socialist government takeover. In this program, using the old saying “For Want of a Nail” Dr. Porter exposes the reality of … Read more about this episode...

The questions posed to our President and Presidential candidates are often shallow and rarely follow up on answers which cry out for follow-up. In this program, Dr. Porter laments this failure on the part of the news media and acts out the role of a debate moderator who actually asks important questions and actually follows up on probable answers. … Read more about this episode...

This is a very special program. For thirty uninterrupted minutes, the Congress’s third most senior member speaks about the polarization and paralysis of government, the economy, taxes, jobs, health care, and the spirituality of the nation. It is an important slice of history at a seminal moment in the life of our nation by one of the most experienced and … Read more about this episode...

The economic plans of all the candidates running for President are so ridiculous and so incomplete that none of them are worth presenting to the public. In this program, Dr. Porter exposes the lies of the Republicans and the ineptitude of the President in their economic pronouncements. He also suggests an alternative candidate for the Presidency in 2012. … Read more about this episode...

The manipulation of our democracy by the powerful and privileged has made us see ourselves as victims. And so we become victims. In this program, Dr. Steven Porter discusses the ways in which Americans have been made to feel that regaining our democracy is hopeless and how we can combat that hopelessness so that we can, in the end, restore … Read more about this episode...

Articulating the functions of government and citizen in a real democracy and articulating the characteristics needed by the elected representatives of a real democracy are not enough to achieve a real democracy. We must also state how those representatives can be elected. It is this vital piece of the puzzle which Dr. Porter discusses in this program. Together with his … Read more about this episode...

The conscious attempt of the American political right wing to dismantle the purposes for which the American democracy was established are discussed and opposed in this program. It is the most important discussion our nation can have at this juncture of our history. … Read more about this episode...

One would think that at this critical time in our history the candidates for President would be of the highest intellectual caliber. Sadly that is not true. On the Democratic side we have a President standing for re-election who has thus far not distinguished himself with either economic or political leadership. On the Republican side, we have a plethora of … Read more about this episode...

The fixes for the healthcare, Social Security, and defense debts which are swamping our nation are really not difficult. Nor would it be difficult to give the people of this country the right to vote directly for President and Vice President. And it would not be hard to return to the tax rates of 1960 when corporations and millionaires did … Read more about this episode...

The ocsar for best picture of 1941 went to a film entitled HOW GREEN WAS MY VALLEY. It told of the destruction of a Welsh coal-mining town due to the forces of economic greed. We see the tragedy unfold through the eyes of the youngest son of a mining family. He witnesses the loss of his brothers’ jobs to cheaper … Read more about this episode...

An enormous amount of media coverage is devoted to things which have little to do with the problems our nation faces and the solutions to those problems. The hype of Donald Trump over President Obama’s birth certificate and the endless photos of the bullet holes in the compound of Osama bin Laden are two examples. In this program, Dr. Porter … Read more about this episode...

In this program, Dr. explains how the glorious history of America has been diverted from the expansion of universal equality to the prostitution of its democratic precepts by skewing political influence to the rich and powerful. He also suggests a way in which the true principles of the nation can be restored. It is on concepts such as these that … Read more about this episode...

In this program Dr. Porter discusses how candidates deliberately misrepresent themselves during their campaigns, and how they plan to rip off the American people in their new budget battles. He also offers a 7-point plan to fix our economy and preserve our democracy. Important listening. … Read more about this episode...

Ever since the Korean War, American Presidents have engaged the nation in military action without the proper Congressional authorization. This is an unconstitutional act and a monumentally dangerous one for the survival of our democracy. In this program, Dr. Porter speaks to the issue and to the responsibility which our presidents, Congress, and citizens have to stop the repetition of … Read more about this episode...

With humor and facts you just aren’t going to get from the corporate media, Dr. Porter reveals the Congressional conspiracy to shift the tax burden of the nation from the wealthy and corporations to the beleaguered working middle class. This is must listening–a message you need to remember come April 15th. … Read more about this episode...

In this program, Dr. Porter discusses the mission of his program–to present the research of current events and the conclusions it leads to regardless of whether those conclusions benefit a left-leaning or right-leaning political agenda. He illustrates his mission with a compelling example of the denial of academic freedom from his own life. A program sure to fire you up.… Read more about this episode...

In this, the last part of the series on the American debt, Dr. Porter unfurls facts rarely, if ever, given to the American public on who has gained and who has lost in the national economy during the last 30 years. For example, the top 1% of Americans have virtually quadrupled their wealth while the rest of the nation has … Read more about this episode...

In the third segment of the series on what is happening in states like Wisconsin and Ohio and in the Congress of the United States, Dr. Porter discusses what is the true agenda of the political right under the guise of economic reform. The gutting of workers’ rights and the injection of anti-choice religious philosophy in the name of fiscal … Read more about this episode...

In this second broadcast of the series “Debt and Disaster,” Dr. Porter laments the fact that under the guise of economic responsibility, the Governor of Wisconsin is trying to eliminate the bargaining rights of unions in order to break them and the anti-choice ideologs in the House of Representatives in Washington are trying to ram an unconstitutional religious agenda down … Read more about this episode...

Congress simply hasn’t got the courage to tackle the big-ticket items. Instead, it is making cuts which are both harmful and only the equivalent of window dressing. In this program, Part I of a series, Dr. Porter gives us all a website (www.usdebtclock.org) on which we can monitor the real problems as they are occurring. He also offers … Read more about this episode...

Dr. Porter continues his discussion of events in the Middle East, allying them with the misrepresentations of our media with respect to war and energy policies. He offers two alternatives with regard to energy as the result of what is happening in Egypt today: one, the continuation of the antiquated actions of the past, the other a forward-looking program for … Read more about this episode...

In this program, Dr. Porter discusses the alliances which have put America on the wrong side of history with respect to the current democratic revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt. Our rhetoric may say that we support the democratic ideals of oppressed peoples, but our teargas cannisters read “Made in the USA,” and when they are hurled at the victims of … Read more about this episode...

When all else fails, there are two institutions of last resort designed to safeguard the American democracy. They are a free press and the United States Supreme Court. But since 1976, both our media and our Supreme Court have lost the ability and the desire to protect our freedoms. In this program, Dr. Porter explains how this tragedy has occurred … Read more about this episode...

In this program, Dr. Porter speaks directly to President Obama about his State of the Union address. … Read more about this episode...

There is a wide-spread feeling that the tragedy of Tuscon was simply the act of one deranged citizen. In this program, Dr. Porter counters that opinion with a frank discussion of the many factors which led not only to the events in Tuscon but have led to many similar events in our recent history. It is our inability to acknowledge … Read more about this episode...

Concluding this two-part series, Dr. Porter continues to expose the lies of our federal government, this time regarding the origins and conduct of the war in Afghanistan. First, he recaps the crimes and cover-ups the public has endured from the JFK assassination to the disappearance of the $700 billion TARP bailout funds. Then he gives the facts behind the creation … Read more about this episode...

The stream of lies and cover-ups by the federal government over the past fifty years or so is discussed by Dr. Porter in Part 1 of a two-part series which will culminate in his next program about Afghanistan. From the magic bullet theory of the JFK assassination to the loss of virtually $700 billion in bank bailout money, the American … Read more about this episode...

Dr. Porter talks directly to Republican leaders John Boehner and Mitch McConnell about their opposition to the solution of a problem which threatens the survival of mankind. … Read more about this episode...

With humor and serious social commentary, Dr. Porter substitutes his wish list for the presents of the twelve days of Christmas with things our President and Congress might do for America in the upcoming New Year. … Read more about this episode...

As if addressing one of his classes, former Assistant Professor Dr. Steven Porter gives the United States Congress his assignment for the New Year. It contains the five pieces of legislative action which Dr. Porter considers to be of immediate significance for the nation, and it is delivered with the expertise and humor of a professional educator. … Read more about this episode...

In this program, Dr. Porter takes a hard, critical look at Glenn Beck’s newest book, “Broke.” When the ignorance of people and the power of media elevates a ‘spitoon philosopher’ to national prominence, Dr. Porter argues, it presents a great threat to the nation. Becks half-truths and self-righteous assumptions are debunked in an effort to alert the American public to … Read more about this episode...

In this program, Dr. Porter discusses the laws which relate to assisted suicide and euthanasia. He exposes the inconsistencies of the laws from state to state and the fuzzy thinking of the US Supreme Court in its rulings on the issue. Finally, he offers a means by which the inconsistencies can be resolved so that the liberties of American citizens … Read more about this episode...

In this program, Dr. Porter discusses the impending cuts to Social Security as well as projected changes in Medicare and tax laws. He offers real solutions to preserving the Social Securty system–solutions which would save benefits, eliminate the national debt, and keep the nation solvent and constitutional. … Read more about this episode...

There is nothing in the US Constitution which guarantees the right of the people to vote for President or Vice President. The laws of every state make unconstitutional rulings to prevent third party candidates from getting on the ballot. The Bush v. Gore ruling of the US Supreme Court giving Bush the 2000 election was in direct violation of the … Read more about this episode...

In Part 1 of the American Covenant programs, Dr. Porter discussed the obligations of our government to our citizens. In Part 2, he discussed the obligations of the citizens to the nation. Both programs are in the archived section of Preserving America. In Part 3 of this series, Dr. Porter discusses the rights which the citizens of America have according … Read more about this episode...

In this second part of the American Covenant series, Dr. Porter discusses the obligations of citizens to our representative democracy, particularly as they apply to the politics and candidates of the current election year. … Read more about this episode...

In this program, Dr. Porter discusses the obligations of the American government as well as the rights and obligations of American citizens using the United States Constitution as his guide. In the absence of such discussions from candidates and media alike, airing this issue is of critical importance, particularly as the elections of 2010 and 2012 come upon us. … Read more about this episode...

Using the 1951 film “The Day the Earth Stood Still” as a reference, in this program Dr. Porter speaks passionately against the campaign rhetoric which is encouraging a pre-emptive strike–perhaps even a nuclear strike–against Iran. He points out the abject folly of such a policy and the danger being done by those who are articulating it. … Read more about this episode...

Dr. Porter is joined on this program by Aimee Christian of the ASPCA in a discussion of the importance of spaying and neutering your pets and in the ability of pets to bring about a spiritual growth in humans which at this point in human history is critical. … Read more about this episode...

Naturalist Dave Aplin joins Dr. Porter in an information-packed discussion of what is happening to the ecology of the Arctic Circle. Mr. Aplin works with the World Wildlife Fund on issues which impact the preservation of the Arctic, one of the most important regions of the planet. His expertise provides stunning details of what has already happened and what might … Read more about this episode...

In this program, Dr. Porter discusses the real facts behind the distribution of wealth in America and realities of who pays federal income taxes. He does this to debunk the lies of commentators like Rush Limbaugh who claim that the majority of income in the U.S. is middle class income and that allowing the Bush tax breaks to the wealthy … Read more about this episode...

In the nine years since 9/11 our world has become more violent, more polarized, and more intolerant. In this program, Dr. Porter discusses the origins of our growing intolerance in both history and religion and offers a perspective which has a chance to diminish the current acrimony. An important counterbalance to the “feel good” rhetoric of the media and our … Read more about this episode...