Never in our life times or our parents lifetimes have we seen such anti middle class propaganda being accepted by the majority of Americans. One has only to look into what is going on in Wisconsin to see what I am talking about. Collective bargaining is one of the middle classes' few real powers. It is one of our few protections against exploitation. One of our few protections from the ultra-wealthy, from big business. Wall Street, mega-corporations and career politicians want the majority of us to believe that the economic crisis we are dealing with is the result of teacher/police/autoworkers/electricians/firefighter pensions, salaries and benefits.
The reality is that we are in an economic crisis because of the greed, corruption and power lust of wall street, mega corporations and career politicians. This unholy trinity has been working to protect itself and it's interests for over thirty years now and if this continues, this triad will destroy the country. We are seeing the results of this thirty year power struggle play out now. The price of tobacco and gas have quadrupled over the past decade. Isn't it funny how those two things are indispensable to it's users. People who drive need gas and people who are addicted to tobacco need cigarettes. The quadrupling of gas prices has driven the prices of everything else up too, everything except wages. How can we continue?
I have no problem reforming teacher/police/firefighter etc. pension plans. Let them all pay into their own pensions. If something is more sane, makes more sense and helps more people than it hurts I am all for it. I do believe these groups of people along with every citizen of the country should have affordable healthcare. Why shouldn't the rest of the middle and lower class stand together with teachers, policeman, autoworkers, electricians and demand they too be given affordable health care? Unfortunately the power trinity I've mentioned above wants to keep us working against each other. This triad is whispering in the ears of the rest of the middle and lower class (many of whom are forced to work just below full time and/or per diem shifts so their wealthy employers don't have to give them benefits), "look at those guys over there, why should they get benefits and a living wage"?!
We need to be united. This country has enough money, resources and wealth. The problem is the wealth and power stay protected and propagated by a very small minority. This minority of ultra-wealthy,wall street and career politicians is a cancer and a parasite on the United States. This parasite ensures its own profits and growth and makes sure our tax dollars go everywhere and benefit everyone except the majority of the people. The only way to fix this mess is to gut the existing system, reform it and ensure that the spending of every dollar collected by the people is directly voted on by the people. I am talking of a new, completely transparent system for directly voting on the president, laws, regulations and how and where to spend tax payer dollars.
This system can not be put in place by reforming the current system. The current system must be completely purged first. I repeat completely purged! Then and only then can we create a new, democratic social contract complete with strict term limits at all levels of government with complete and utter transparency. In this new United States the billions of dollars in assets of companies like Goldman-Sachs will give it's owners no more power in government than a housewife in New Jersey.
We need to go back to the basics of democracy.
No law or regulation should ever be passed without a majority of direct votes and that the passage of the law has been scientifically determined and agreed to do more good to the majority of citizens than harm.
The guiding principal of our government must be what is in the best interest of the majority of citizens not what makes a corporation more profitable.
The unholy trinity (as I will from here on refer to big corporations, wall street and career politicians) has been spending massive amounts of time, energy and money convincing everyone else that they are not the problem and at the same time consolidating power and ensuring their own survival. We must be as brave as our forefathers were in throwing off the yolk of the British. We too must be willing to die for equality, to be tortured to ensure our children and their children live in a free and just nation.
Happy 4th of July
Matt A
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