The problem with a government like ours, is that in allowing the freedom for it to be a representative government, we also have to build in the possibility for it to become corrupt. We as a nation tend to get caught up in our own affairs and stop paying attention to the people we elected to represent us. Over the course of this countries history we have gone to sleep at least 2 times before. When that happens, special interest groups move into our government and start changing it to better represent them. At this time the corporations and super rich have gained control. They are being more clever and less scrupulous than they have ever been in the past and are dug in like a damned tick. Fortunately, also built into our form of government is the means of dislodging the usurpers. Unfortunately it takes a solid majority of our population to wake up and recognize the threat before we can boot them out. Like I said they are being more clever this time. They have dumbed down our education system by manipulating funding. They are masters of propaganda and own all the major media players in our system. Because of these two things most of our country is having trouble waking up to the problem.

I’ve been reading through quotes concerning racism, bigotry, and intolerance. I have come to the conclusion that we have, in the past, been in the presence of some amazingly intelligent people, able to cut through prose, propaganda, and nonsense to succinctly describe situations and solutions to the same problems we face today. We pay no more attention to them than their contemporaries did.

While the nation slept politically, we got what we thought we wanted, and it turned out to be the very last thing we needed. The United States became a three party system again.

Added to and infiltrated among the Democrats and Republicans we find that a stealthy Corporate party has descended upon the political scene.  Rather than declare themselves however, they operate by appealing to the baser nature of sitting representatives.

Turns out it is easier to buy Democrats and Republicans, then just manipulate them to do the bidding of the extreme rich and corporate interests.

We need to force them out in the open. It is much easier to know who to vote for when you know who they represent. Watch their voting records, listen to what they say, and be mindful that as a third, undeclared party they do not have the best interests of this country, or the people of this country at heart. Name them, shame them, and vote them out.

As for the minimum wage, I question why there are those that judge so harshly the efforts of others. While I would concur that the jobs performed at that level are not rocket science, they are still yet meaningful work, and performed usually, to the best of the employee’s ability. To imply that any man or woman performing to the best of their ability is unworthy of their hire I find to be petty and mean. That the companies these people work for choose to pay them as little as the law will allow is understandable. Their concern for their employees in this day and age ends at the bottom line of the company. It has, therefore fallen on us, through collective bargaining and regulation by our government to take care of each other and our heirs. This we do not do to spite our employers, but, rather to protect ourselves from greed. It would seem that we have forgotten how to help each other in our rush to help ourselves.

I had this friend, he was the tightest guy I ever knew. That man could squeeze $2 out of every quarter he ever owned. That’s just the way he ran his business too. For every downturn in profit, he implemented another cutback in expenditures. For a little bit it would work. Then the cuts would start affecting things that were essential. What was really needed was growth in profits. The only real way to save his business would have been to expand his customer base, to increase his cash flow. It never occurred to him. He just kept on cutting back, until there was no business left to cut. Closed his doors. Same thing is happening to our country under the GOP right now. They keep cutting taxes on this end, and compensating for the lack of revenue by cutting services on the other end and eventually there won’t be anything left to cut. At any point they could reverse the policies that are destroying our middle class. They could reimplement the taxes on the only segment of our country that are making money. They could go back to collecting taxes from corporations instead of subsidizing their flight from this country. Instead of killing us with the death of a thousand cuts.

If you apply the lesson taught by “The Boy Who Cried Wolf” You know that diminishing returns and eventually a backlash should have resulted from the GOP’s attempts to scuttle “Obamacare, and yet they kept trying. After fifty or so attempts I realized that it was my interpretation of their attempts that was in error. These are educated people, they know as well as any of us the effects of going too often to a well.

It was advertising. Trading votes for money to buy those votes back and more later.

While it would seem that those votes to repeal the ACA were a waste of time and effort, in fact, every one of those votes were political merchandizing. Those votes were traded to political investors for the money you will see being used by candidates to buy your vote.

The corporations and the 1% are doing fine, so, do the right thing, vote for someone that will represent you.

Ours is a representative government. That means we elect the people we think will best represent our ideals. If you are electing millionaires, billionaires and politicians bought by the rich, who is going to be best represented?
Who do we need to be electing? If there isn’t anyone you think would represent you, running in your district, encourage someone to run. It’s our government. We decide who represents us. unfortunately this problem isn’t going to fix itself. Fortunately if we spend a little time and effort returning us to the right track now, it’ll save years of pain and expense setting it to rights later. Now is the time to step up and make your voice heard.

We must not tolerate the intolerant. It is okay to be prejudiced but the second you take any action based on your prejudice you make your problem our problem, and we don’t need any more problems.