the betsy and jesse fink foundation. the hkh foundation. barbara g. fleischman. and by our sole corporate sponsor, mutual of america, designing customized individual and group retirement products. that's why we're your retirement company. >> bill moyers: welcome. what if you were a corporation that stood to make a bundle if oil from the canadian tar sands was imported by the united states? and what if you thought federal laws to protect the environment were going to stop that oil-importing from happening? you'd set your sights on washington, spread some money around inside the beltway, hire big gun lobbyists to wine and dine the politicians, and stroke the regulators to let the "free market" work, right? right. you would do all that, but you wouldn't stop there. you'd also take your battle to the states, because if you can get laws that serve your interest in one state capitol after another, it might not matter much what washington has to say about it. especially in a time like this when our national government is polarized, paralyzed, and dysfunctional and an ob

the betsy and jesse fink foundation. the hkh foundation. barbara g. fleischman. and by our sole corporate sponsor, mutual of america, designing customized individual and group retirement products. that's why we're your retirement company. >> bill moyers: welcome. the summer blitz of blockbuster movies has arrived. super heroes or lesser mortals with excellent motor skills are here to save the earth from super villains, asteroids, aliens or other disasters, natural in nature, but probably induced by global warming. yes, it's another summer of excess and escapism with the thrills and chills of hollywood scaring us down to our popcorn, yet always with a happy ending. meanwhile, back here in the real world, where we actually live, the best film of the summer isn't an epic tale of horror or adventure but an eye-opening, heart-moving and mind-expanding reminder that millions of people in this richest country in the world, working men and women and their children, don't have enough to eat. the film's called "a place at the table" and it's one of the best documentaries i

the betsy and jesse fink foundation. the hkh foundation. barbara g. fleischman. and by our sole corporate sponsor, mutual of america, designing customized individual and group retirement products. that's why we're your retirement company. >> bill moyers: welcome. there's hardly a sentient grown-up in this country who isn't aware that our economy is no longer working for vast numbers of everyday people. the rich and powerful have more wealth and power than ever. everyone else keeps losing ground. between 2009 and 2011 alone, qc: at the bottom, working people are practically flat on their back. we talk a lot about what's happening to the middle class, but the american dream's really become a nightmare for the poor. just about everyone has an opinion about the trouble we're in -- the blame game is at fever pitch in washington, where obstinate republicans and hapless democrats once again play kick-the-can with the problems we face. you wish they would just stop and listen to richard wolff. an attentive and systematic observer of capitalism and democracy, he taught ec

the betsy and jesse fink foundation. the hkh foundation. barbara g. fleischman.nd by our sole corporate sponsor, mutual of america, designing customized individual and group retirement products. that's why we're your retirement company. >> coming up -- deborah potter looks at a new movement to help the country's two million prison inmates. >> we don't recognize the god in our brothers and sisters who are in prison. >> and, popular evangelical leader joni eareckson tada on her battle with breast cancer. >> start where you are. this is the new base line, now get on with living. >> plus, the devotion of sufi whirling dervishes.

the betsy and jesse fink foundation. the hkh foundation. barbara g. fleischman. and by our sole corporate sponsor, mutual of america, designing customized individual and group retirement products. that's why we're your retirement company. >> bill moyers: welcome. inequality matters. you will hear people say it doesn't, but they are usually so high up the ladder they can't even see those at the bottom. the distance between the first and the least in america is vast and growing. in california's silicon valley, apple, facebook and google, among others, have reinvented the gold rush. but down the road in san jose it's not so pretty a picture. do the math -- in an area where one fourth of the population earn an average of about $19,000 dollars a year, rent alone can average more than $20,000 dollars a year, and that difference adds up to homelessness. we talked to associated press reporter martha mendoza, who brought this story to our attention. >> martha mendoza: i've been a journalist in this area for 25 years, and during that time it has gone from having a pretty r