Money, Money, Money – Overwhelming Democracy

Everywhere we look in America the power of money and those who wield it – overwhelms. And most powerfully and destructively in the political engine of government.

It’s as if we’ve returned to the turn of the 20th Century where the Robber Barons ruled. But there is a difference and it is enormous. Then Carnegie in steel, Harriman in railroads, Rockefeller in oil and Ford in autos represented an entire class of American industrialists/capitalists who built the country and owned the jobs that made it run. By owning the jobs they essentially owned the country – but people worked and the country produced.

It took a Teddy Roosevelt – from that class – to break their trusts and other monopolistic practices with a newly empowered Federal Government and then his cousin Franklin – also from that class – to use the fallout from the Depression and the growth of unions to put lasting constraints on a once overwhelming power.

Today the overwhelming power is back. While they are capitalists to the core, they are not Industrialists. They produce nothing. They are nameless hedge fund operators who make more money with money than manufacturers and industrialists ever made with products. The Robber Barons made jobs. The hedge fund operators and technology experts funded by them, make nothing.

We no longer produce. The Chinese have supplanted us as the capitalist power of the world. We are a debtor nation with no jobs for our high school or college graduates. We still offer immigrants jobs at the low end of the scale…but the middle class is ebbing away day by day.

Our democracy is stalled on the tracks of desperation: politicians who are desperate to keep their jobs. Now, when we need government most, we see nothing from Washington. Plenty of blame – the President, the differences in party philosophy…anything politicians can sell to the media.

But the truth is much simpler: if they vote on anything each of them fears the result of that vote as a potential threat to their job security.

We’re not just referring to the candidates found and supported by the Tea Party and the Koch Brothers. We mean everybody.

And while many are disappointed in President Barack Obama and his leadership style (the man will never show either anger or disgust) the deeper truth is that the Republican Party leadership pledged a day after his election that they would try to drive him out of the job and never work with him and they have been true to their word. That has NEVER happened in our national history.

Our democracy has not only been bought by money, it has been neutered by the politicians that money has bought.

When you realize how often we’re told that the economy driven by Wall St. grows stronger every day; when you realize that middle America hasn’t receive a raise since the 1980’s; when you realize that no matter what the forecast, the jobs that are supposed to be on their way never arrive – you recognize how badly we are being served by our elected representatives.

Still there are the excuses and the make-believes that political parties still stand for something and that one or another will wake up and bring government – and democracy- back.

But while the same old stories and promises go on and on 46 million Americans are on food stamps!!!

Though we know that capitalism runs on the ability to produce and sell goods and services, we see the system being manipulated by the power of wealth which no longer makes money the old fashioned way by working, but uses money to gain a greater financial return than money used to produce goods and services.

Consider all the new industries in America. They are Amazon, Google, Facebook – all about making money without producing anything much at all. The money flows. Very few people are needed to make that flow happen. The economy grows. Wall St prospers. The politicians follow orders.

Voila! The 21st Century no longer belongs to America…or Americans.

Several years ago social media ignited a fascinating demonstration which made world news, occurred in other nations and then disappeared.

A three word message began appearing on computers all over the country: Occupy Wall St.

Nothing more was necessary to understand that message. People – mostly young people – came – and stayed for several busy weeks…and then the movement seemed to disappear.

The message that appeared in Spain that drew its own crowds was much more direct and we think…much more to the point. It was also three words: Return Our Democracy.

The only way that will happen is to end the unlimited terms of office for Congress and with it the ‘jobs for life’ reality that is destroying our democracy.

Money can only buy people who are there to be bought.

Not easy but perhaps easier than waiting for another Teddy or FDR.