Get used to it. It's the same old see-saw. It's because politicians are only figureheads. Well paid, mostly from tips, and they don't want to admit it but they are figureheads nonetheless.
The public picks the party, which is then controlled by the current money folks. When the power changes, the money flow changes with it. Nice.
Of course it's not all that perfect. The R's get $7 from business for every $1 the Dems get from labor, so the power disparity is obvious. Yet the R's will complain that Obama is now getting so much more from the little guys than McCain is. How's that for a reversal?
We wonder why money is not available for education, health care or FDA oversight of foods and drugs. Simply, we're out of public money because it's going into someone else's pockets. Someone big and someone private: the very people that are funding our elections.
In subsidies and tax breaks, our nation's resources are being transferred to the wealthy, so those dollars aren't available for schools and other social infrastructure.
However much the politicians can sell their votes for is the name of the free market game.
We all hate taxes, and I've paid my share. But high taxes are a direct result of our moneyed political system, and campaign cash is the fuel for spending. As long as money buys politicians, government overspending will continue. It cannot stop, and conservatives seem okay with this.
Our CEOs may be greedy, but they aren't stupid. They know how to spend money to make money, and their easiest mark is the politician. Much easier than legitimately competing in the marketplace. CEOs say they want a free market, but what they really want is a protected market and they're willing to pay for it.
Deregulation adds to the bottom line, profits they can't always get through legitimate competition. A look at the deregulation in the housing and financial markets are living proof.
We falsely blame our demise on politicians who make bad decisions, but that lets the CEOs off the hook. The politicians are being paid to implement the CEO's bad decisions. Blame the Pols for letting bribery and payola influence their votes, and for selling their public obligation to the highest bidder. But blame the private sector for the bad spending decisions that result.
It's not just lucrative campaign contributions, It's also the ability to initiate and pass or block legislation that benefits their personal investment. As an investor, how would you like that advantage over other investors? How about being able to give away massive tax dollars to your future boss to ensure a $2 million a year job at Big Pharma, as Rep. Billy Tauzin did?
In fairness, there is a handful of pretty decent state politicians who want to clean up the system. See WDC's list of nine (first column). At the federal level the Dems have embraced campaign reform but also pork barrel projects. So much for them being our savior.
The public picks the party, which is then controlled by the current money folks. When the power changes, the money flow changes with it. Nice.
Of course it's not all that perfect. The R's get $7 from business for every $1 the Dems get from labor, so the power disparity is obvious. Yet the R's will complain that Obama is now getting so much more from the little guys than McCain is. How's that for a reversal?
We wonder why money is not available for education, health care or FDA oversight of foods and drugs. Simply, we're out of public money because it's going into someone else's pockets. Someone big and someone private: the very people that are funding our elections.
In subsidies and tax breaks, our nation's resources are being transferred to the wealthy, so those dollars aren't available for schools and other social infrastructure.
However much the politicians can sell their votes for is the name of the free market game.
We all hate taxes, and I've paid my share. But high taxes are a direct result of our moneyed political system, and campaign cash is the fuel for spending. As long as money buys politicians, government overspending will continue. It cannot stop, and conservatives seem okay with this.
Our CEOs may be greedy, but they aren't stupid. They know how to spend money to make money, and their easiest mark is the politician. Much easier than legitimately competing in the marketplace. CEOs say they want a free market, but what they really want is a protected market and they're willing to pay for it.
Deregulation adds to the bottom line, profits they can't always get through legitimate competition. A look at the deregulation in the housing and financial markets are living proof.
We falsely blame our demise on politicians who make bad decisions, but that lets the CEOs off the hook. The politicians are being paid to implement the CEO's bad decisions. Blame the Pols for letting bribery and payola influence their votes, and for selling their public obligation to the highest bidder. But blame the private sector for the bad spending decisions that result.
It's not just lucrative campaign contributions, It's also the ability to initiate and pass or block legislation that benefits their personal investment. As an investor, how would you like that advantage over other investors? How about being able to give away massive tax dollars to your future boss to ensure a $2 million a year job at Big Pharma, as Rep. Billy Tauzin did?
In fairness, there is a handful of pretty decent state politicians who want to clean up the system. See WDC's list of nine (first column). At the federal level the Dems have embraced campaign reform but also pork barrel projects. So much for them being our savior.
