I'm beginning to see the gap as unbridgeable.

[Sancho]

167. Ok..follow the links for one simple example....

In the US alone, it's easy to see that metrics of inequality have gone up and down for the last century. Also, the metrics of money influence on political candidates have not been constant.

Even in times of less inequality, there was plenty of social injustice. Thom Hartmann likes to cite one popular example of the increase of swimming pools as the American economy prospered, but it was accompanied by pools that were off limits to minority and created an new issue of desegregation.

Some of the most influential laws (special education and the ADA come to mind) had nothing to do with less influence of money on Congress, and in fact occurred despite a war in Asia and Bernie (new to Congress) complaining about the same government bribery that he complains about now. Somehow, some good legislation got passed because enough people wanted it to happen and it was the right thing to do.

There's no question that good times help people, but there's also no question that money influence on Congress has been a problem forever and will continue to be a problem in a Democratic government. It will always be a fight to elect better people, nominate fair judges, and pass good laws. Money influence has it's limits, and that has been proven many times too.

Good legislation can occur during tough times. Also, bad legislation can occur during good times. There is no magic President or regulation that will fix things - it's a constant process that requires people to elect the smartest and best candidates that we can.

If enough voters want to raise tax rates on the wealthy and raise the minimum wage, then get out and elect a different Congress. Only 40% of those eligible voted in the last elections. The primary numbers are actually down so far compared to 2008. Right now, I don't see enough people in the streets to make a change - but I see a lot of Trump supporters. We need ALL Democrats to GOTV. It would not matter who the President was without more voters if you want to make a difference.

Most inequality is a global problem that the US alone can't control, but voters have proven many times that they can ignore the money influence and pass whatever they want; locally and nationally. Right now, there are not enough Democratic voters to do much except complain. We'll see next November if it changes.

The problem is not simply the influence of money. The problem is that Democrats don't get out and vote in large enough numbers to elect better people.