Folk talk a lot about political dysfunction
and conflicting fiscal policies. We debate about health care, which everybody
seems to agree needs radical changing, but accept no changes because in
political bickering. We get excited about small issues with conservatives who
believe in individual rights wanting to take away the rights of homosexuals to
marry and don’t see an obvious ideological conflict there. And the list goes on
and on and on.
James Kwak, (author of White House Burning) on the Baseline
Scenario makes good, obvious but neglected point. One of the great reasons
for political polarization has to do with “ the growing influence of money in politics and
the resulting need for politicians to go chasing after contributions from
extremist billionaires.
While we need to get rid of the huge tax
cuts that have been brought in over the Reagan through Bush years, which have
made the rich richer and thereby more powerful, the main result of this is the
wealth they now pour into the political process which has warped the voter and
those who seek our votes. That is likely the major issue for the years ahead.
How do we get congress back to representing the people rather than a select
few?
PK’s excellent article points to many of
the factors that are leading us down the garden path to a garden that seem
doomed to become a desert. It seems to me these all reflect the power of
moneyed people to influence a non reflective public. A good case in point is
the recent TV political ad against Obamacare, that contains no facts, just
scare tactics and inferences and the delusions that the “taxpayers” are paying
for all this while ignoring the wealthy who don’t want anything coming from
their pockets. What does the “TV Doctor” mean when she says “even if they can
choose to come to me as their doctor what if I can’t come to them?” Mumbo jumbo
perhaps for “I need the big bucks or screw them”?
I for one would gladly give back the few
bucks in tax breaks, (though I and others like me are the ones that should be
getting them, comparatively speaking) if we’d get rid of the major tax breaks
for the wealthy. Hell, I’d gladly pay much higher taxes, and would love to see
the government grow in size rather than reduce, if we would get the benefits
others nations give their citizens.
Once we were the model for other nations of
how one could rise economically, socially, politically, etc, if we just worked
hard and put our minds to it. We are no longer that model and other nations
know it. They are aghast at our selfishness and dupability. It’s embarrassing.
Some of our politicians are brought to
shame over sexual peccadilloes they commit. But none seem ashamed of whoring
after the PAC money of the hidden wealth.
