There's a stunning lack of choice for American consumers today, and nowhere is that more evident than in our nation's ever-shrinking airline industry. According to a new report from the AP, the average roundtrip ticket to anywhere in the U.S. was over $509.15, including taxes, in the first half of this year. That's up $14 from the same period last year.

 

The AP also points out that domestic airfare pricing is outpacing inflation, up 2.7% compared to the 2.1% increase in the Consumer Price Index. And, according to data from the Airlines Reporting Corporation, airfare costs have shot up 10.7% over the past five years alone. So, what's behind these sky-high airfare prices?

 

Well, as the AP piece points out, airlines have discovered that thanks to the economic recovery, more people want to fly, so airlines have dropped the number of available seats on their planes, which all translates to higher ticket prices. The airlines are taking advantage of simple supply-and-demand economics. But that's just one piece of the puzzle.

 

Read more here.

 

-Thom

 

Tonight on The Big Picture on RT TV at 7pm and 10pm... The Sovereign Citizen's Threat (check your local listings for stations or stream at RT or Free Speech TV, and catch past shows on Youtube)

 

Have a question or comment for Thom? Grab your phone, hit record and send your video to YourTakeMyTake@gmail.com and we may air it on "The Big Picture."

 

Big Picture Politics Panel:
- Kimberly Inez McGuire, National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health    
- Marc Harrold, Congressional Candidate (L-VA -11th district) / Observations of White Noise  
- Patrick Hedger, American Encore    

 

 

The Sovereign Citizen's Threat
- Mark Potok, Southern Poverty Law Center 

 

Plus, Central America Crisis Belies CAFTA's Empty Promises
- Mike Dolan, International Brotherhood of Teamsters  

 

  

Tuesday's Daily Stack 

Hour One: Why Move to Amend is more important than ever
- Kaitlin Sopoci-Belknap, Move To Amend 

Site: "Pledge to Amend Campaign".

Case: "Buckley v. Valeo", 1976.

Book: The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell.

Book: "Unequal Protection: The Battle to Save Democracy" by Thom Hartmann

Book: "Unequal Protection: How Corporations Became "People" - And How You Can Fight Back" by Thom Hartmann - new updated version out now!

 

Article: "S&P: Wealth Gap Is Slowing US Economic Growth" by Josh Boak.

Article: Tax Cuts: The B.S. and the Facts by Larry Beinhart. Large income tax cuts are followed by a bubble and then a crash.

Book: "Rebooting the American Dream: 11 Ways to Rebuild Our Country" by Thom Hartmann.

Book: "Rebooting the American Dream: 11 Ways to Rebuild Our Country" by Thom Hartmann.

Article: "Obama: 'We tortured some folks' after 9/11" by Mario Trujillo.

Article: "Nixon's Sad, Strange Exit, 40 Years Ago" by Rick Perlstein.

Article: "U.S. General Is Killed in Attack at Afghan Base, Officials Say" by Matthew Rosenberg and Haris Kakar.

Article: "Marijuana Clubs Rise Out of Decades-Old Spanish Laws" by Suzanne Daley.

Article: "Repeal Prohibition, Again" by NY Times.

Article: "Star Trek: A Private Little War" by Gene Roddenberry.

Movie: "2001: A Space Odyssey (film)".

Article: "Archaeologists piece together evidence of bloody apocalypse in 12th century America" by David Ferguson.

Article: "Bush Rejects Taliban Bin Laden Offer" by Kathy Gannon, Oct. 14, 2001.

Law: "Taft-Hartley Labor Act", 1947.

Case: "Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission" (2010).

Bill: "S.J.Res.19 - A joint resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relating to contributions and expenditures intended to affect elections." by Sen. Udall, Tom [D-NM].

Bill: "H.R.119 - To amend the Internal Revenue Code to make permanent the credit for increasing research activities." by Rep. Holt, Rush [D-NJ-12].

Article: "Catalan language" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Castilian" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Morrison - Grady Plan (1946)" by Zachary Karabell.

Quote: "Jesus Christ couldn't please them when he was here on earth, so how could anyone expect that I would have any luck?" by Harry Truman.

Case: "Burwell v. Hobby Lobby", 2014.

Article: "Michigan Use Tax and Community Stabilization Share, Proposal 1 (August 2014)" by BallotPedia.

Article: "The Powell Memo or Powell Manifesto".

Hour Two: Who's afraid of Sheldon Adelson?
- Neil McCabe, Guns and Patriots Newsletter 

Article: "Shifting sands: Now Adelson orders GOP to support amnesty" by Neil McCabe.

Article: "Abramoff: Adelson's pressing GOP to outlaw online gaming is corruption" by Neil McCabe.

Law: "Tillman Act of 1907".

Article: "First Amendment to the United States Constitution".

Article: "Sherman Antitrust Act", 1890.

 

Article: "Timothy Leary" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Open Letter from World Scientists to All Governments Concerning Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs)".

Article: "Article V Constitutional Convention - "You do not need the people to do this..."" by pajoly.

The good: "Full-Page Marijuana Ad Runs In New York Times" by Eddie Scarry.

The bad: "Steve King begs Obama: 'Please don't' make me impeach you over immigration" by David Edwards.

The very, very ugly: "Bomb Gaza: the 'disgusting' games on Google's app store" by Matthew Sparkes.

 

Article: "Article V Handbook" by ALEC.

Article: "ALEC's Jeffersonian Project Pushes to Amend the Constitution" by Jessica Mason.

Article: "Statewide Ballot Issues: Proposal 2014-1: Voter Approval of a New Statewide Local Tax to Reimburse Local Governments for PPT Reforms" by Citizens Research Council of Michigan.

Article: "13th Amendment" (end slavery).

 

Talk Radio News Segment:
- Bob Ney  

Article: " Donald Trump Tweets: Ebola Missionaries 'Must Suffer the Consequences' of Traveling to Liberia" by Sami K. Martin.

Article: "Israel withdraws troops, 72-hour Gaza truce begins" by Nidal al-Mughrabi, Lin Noueihed and Dan Williams.

Article: "House Approves $694 Million Border Spending Bill, Votes To End DREAMer Program" by James Cullum.

Article: "GOP Congressman Accuses Democrats Of Waging A 'War On Whites'" by Sam Levine.

Article: "U.S. General Shot And Killed In Afghanistan" by William McDonald.

Site: "Goats for the old Goat".

Site: Governor Free Don Siegelman.

Book: "Sideswiped: Lessons Learned Courtesy of the Hit Men of Capitol Hill" by Robert Ney.

Article: "TRNS News Notes-8/4" by Victoria Jones.

Article: "TRNS News Notes- 8/1" by Victoria Jones.

Article: "Barcelona's booming cannabis clubs turn Spain into 'Holland of the South'" by Ashifa Kassam.

Article: "Tainted Yellow Fin Tuna Imported from India Sent 400 People to Hospital" by Margaret Elkis.

Article: "Mark Levin's Liberty Amendments" by Daniel Horowitz.

Book: The Liberty Amendments by Mark R. Levin.

Article: "97% of the 100 Poorest Counties are in Red States" by RogerCoppock.

Article: "Windfall Elimination Provision" by Wikipedia.

Bill: "H.R.1795 - Social Security Fairness Act of 2013" by Rep. Rodney Davis [R-IL-13].

Bill: "S.896 - Social Security Fairness Act of 2013" by Sen. Begich, Mark [D-AK].

Article: "One Congressman's Very Awkward Confrontation With DREAMers: 'You Are Very Good At English'" by Esther Yu-Hsi Lee.

Article: "Liberalism" by Random House Dictionary.

Article: "Conservatism" by Random House Dictionary.

Article: "The tea party radio network" by Kenneth P. Vogel and Mackenzie Weinger.

Article: "Global Population Estimates by Age, 1950-2050" by Pew Research.

Article: "2012 National Population Projections" by US Census Bureau.

 

Article: "6 companies own 90% of media consumed by Americans" by AWD.

Article: "States Rush To Get Ahead Of SCOTUS Ruling Against Obamacare Subsidies" by Dylan Scott.

Article: "Government Surveillance Threatens Journalism, Law and Thus Democracy: Report" by Lauren McCauley.

Article: "Americans In Debt: 35 Percent Have Unpaid Bills Reported To Collection Agencies" by Josh Boak.

Article: "Labor Board Delivers Victory for Low-Wage McDonald's Workers" by Max Ocean.

       

Wednesday on The Thom Hartmann Program, 12-3pm ET 

We'll have the best of the rest of the news...all the latest news & information you won't be hearing from the corporate owned news media...

 

Along with your calls right here on...

 

The Thom Hartmann Program, Occupying The Media 3 hours a day 5 days a week" for "we the people"

 

And don't forget...Democracy is NOT a spectator sport...it begins with you...

Free excerpt, read book for free at Truthout, buy the book!

    

Pre-order The American Revolution of 1800 by Dan Sisson with Thom Hartmann at Amazon or Barnes & Noble now!

Should Congress be on vacation with so many issues unresolved?

Vote here!

Pre-order Thom's forthcoming book, Death in the Pines: An Oakley Tyler Novel, at Amazon or Barnes & Noble now!

Buy Thom's newest book now!
Also on Kindle

"Crash of 2016" website

Watch Thom on: - MSNBC's The Cycle
- CNN's Crossfire
- Democracy Now!

Doomsday Trigger for CA Mega Drought?

Crazy Alert - UfOs are Confirmed

Are Radiated Fukushima Monkeys the Canaries in the Coal Mine?

Court OK's Rampant Antibiotic Use on Factory Farms

The Good, The Bad &The Very Very Scientifically Ugly

Scientists Link Fracking to Earthquakes...

What Happens if Ebola comes to America?

Full Show 8/4/14: GOP: The Do-Nothing Party

Thom discusses the do-nothing party with Bishop Council Nedd of the Project 21 Black Leadership Network, the newly released torture report with the Brennan Center's Elizabeth Goitein, Argentina's financial mess with Investigative Journalist Greg Palast and Toledo's algae problem with Circle of Blue's Keith Schneider. In tonight's "Daily Take" Thom discusses America's farm-grown terrorists.

Move to Amend...Now More than Ever

Will We Ever Hold our Presidents Accountable?

Who's Afraid of Sheldon Adelson?

Thom Hartmann on Economic & Labor News: August 4, 2014

The Four Stages of Learning

Just why do we call America 'The Homeland'?

The Caucus Room Conspiracy Rolls on...

Caller: Scottie Nell Hughes has Nothing new to say!

Thank you for being part of our ever growing community for News, Debate and Opinion on the Thom Hartmann Program.

 

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Sincerely,