Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Let's Talk Plutocracy!

It's been about a month since my last post. I've missed the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear, the midterm elections, the A-Rod/Cameron Diaz break up... So what sparked my need to blog?

It relates to a web post that has been circulating that quotes a pamphlet entitled "The Ten Cannots" which was published in 1916 by William J.H. Boetker:

You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.

You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.

You cannot help little men by tearing down big men.

You cannot lift the wage earner by pulling down the wage payer.

You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.

You cannot establish sound security on borrowed money.

You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred.

You cannot keep out of trouble by spending more than you earn.

You cannot build character and courage by destroying men's initiative and independence.

And you cannot help men permanently by doing for them what they can and should do for themselves.

"The Ten Cannots" have become a rallying cry for libertarians who want to see an end to government intervention into the economy or social issues and the anthem for those railing against President Obama's "socialist" agenda. Everyman for himself. Social Darwinism. Pull yourself up by your own boot straps... You get the picture.

Many who support his view also say that we should trust in the voluntary compassion and the charitable philanthropy of Americans to take care of those in need.

I’d love to trust in the compassion and charity of my fellow man – but I can’t. I can't because there are people out there who fall solidly into the "haves" category (whether they believe they are privileged or not) who take without giving. I can’t because there are people who feel entitled to everything they can get, yet feel no obligation to give back. I can’t because our political system has fostered a plutocracy that is more interested in protecting its wealth than protecting its people. I can't because when I stopped by my local food pantry recently, the shelves were almost bare.

Merriam Webster's Dictionary defines plutocracy as: 1. government by the wealthy; 2. a controlling class of the wealthy.

The United States has become a plutocracy and is in danger of being consumed by the value system of the wealthiest of the wealthy that got us to this point in history.

Don't think we live in a plutocracy? More than $270 million dollars was spent in the 2010 midterm elections. More than $72 million of that came from just three sources - American Crossroads (aka Karl Rove and Ed Gillespie), Crossroads GPS (also a Rove/Gillespie juggernaut), and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, the average cost of winning a House race in 2010 was $1.09 million, while the average cost of a Senate seat was $8.28 million.

With the Supreme Courts ruling in the case of Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, big money will have an even bigger say in who will be running our country. That would be all well and good if these corporations and the individuals who run them had any interest in furthering the cause of our country instead of feathering their own nests.

But don't take my word for it. Read Bill Moyers' October 29, 2010 speech at Boston University. It's a bit long, especially for those who favor sound bite politics, but it is definitely worth the time. Moyers lays out a cogent and powerful argument as to why plutocracy and democracy don't mix.

Sure - pull yourself up by your own bootstraps. I'd be down with that but what if the corporate robber barons have cut off your bootstraps and sent them to China? Leave it to the private sector to grow our economy and take care of our poor? Corporations are sitting on piles of cash reserves yet are not reinvesting in their companies, creating jobs, or stimulating our economy. Instead they are buying back stock and improving the portfolios of their CEOs. Too bad for the little guy who just wants a job so he can provide for his family.

As for relying on the private sector to provide a safety net for those left behind by our failing economy...that's like leaving the fox in charge of the hen house. It is the corporate practices of wage regression, overseas outsourcing, and the hoarding of corporate resources that is creating a growing underclass.

But back to our discussion of plutocracy... Former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich recently called the rise of plutocracy a result of a perfect storm:

The perfect storm: An unprecedented concentration of income and wealth at the top; a record amount of secret money flooding our democracy; and a public becoming increasingly angry and cynical about a government that’s raising its taxes, reducing its services, and unable to get it back to work.

We’re losing our democracy to a different system. It’s called plutocracy.

As for those of you who believe that you can't help the poor by destroying the rich... Wake up!!! It's not a zero sum game. Ensuring a safety net for the poor does not mean that our economy will collapse. It means that a family may not have to live in the back of their car when Bank of America forecloses on their house because they defaulted on a mortgage that BoA never should have issued in the first place. It means that maybe some children won't go hungry tomorrow. It means that perhaps we can prevent another environmental catastrophe like the BP oil spill. It means we might be able to prevent another workplace catastrophe like the Massey Mine explosion. It means, that maybe, just maybe, some people will be able to pull themselves up from abject poverty to achieve the American Dream.

And for those of you who have taken Boetker's pamphlet to heart, I pray for you and yours that you never find yourself poor, you never find yourself weak, you never find yourself out of work, and never find yourself in need of help. But if you ever do, don't worry, there are still people who believe that:

You will not destroy the rich by helping the poor;

You will not weaken the strong by strengthening the weak; and

You will not pull the wage earner down by lifting the wage payer.

And you know what? Taxes suck, but they pay for stuff. Government regulations are a headache but they save lives. And some people getting government assistance will game the system, whether they are receiving food stamps and section 8 housing or massive corporate bailouts and tax cuts.

But guess what? We live in a civilized society. We’re supposed to take care of each other.

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