The Money Party - The Essence of our Political Troubles

[autorank]

The Money Party

The Essence of our Political Troubles

Michael Collins
"Scoop" Independent News
Washington, DC

The Money Party is a small group of enterprises and individuals who have most of the money in this country. They use that money to make more money. Controlling who gets elected to public office is the key to more money for them and less for us. As 2008 approaches, The Money Party is working hard to maintain its perfect record.

It is not about Republicans versus Democrats. Right now, the Republicans do a better job taking money than the Democrats. But The Money Party is an equal opportunity employer. They have no permanent friends or enemies, just permanent interests. Democrats are as welcome as Republicans to this party. It’s all good when you’re on the take and the take is legal.

This is not a conspiracy theory. There are no secret societies or sinister operators. This party is up front and in your face. Just follow the money. One percent of Americans hold 33% of the nation’s wealth. The top 10% hold 72% of the total wealth. The bottom 40% of Americans control only 0.3% (three tenths of one percent). And that was before “pay day loans.”

The story is as old as civilization but the stakes have never been higher than they are right now.

In every campaign for major office, the party passes out money and buys candidates from both parties. Thanks to the candidates who get elected, this pay to play system remains perfectly legal. Those elected get luxury trips, sweet jobs for family members, and more campaign contributions for the next round of elections. What they do is perfectly legal even though it looks like bribery.

In return for contributions, the election winners come through by fixing the laws so that The Money Party cleans up. Lower taxes, highly favorable business regulations, laws that shield their businesses from real competition all start with the nonstop flow of Money Party funds. Cost is no object, because in the end it’s all paid for with our tax dollars.

The Money Party gets no-bid contracts as well as the ability to lay off their employees and dump their pension plans just about any time they want. It doesn’t get much better than that. It's welfare for big money and survival of the fittest for the rest of us.

We are nothing to them.

When the White House and Congress ignore the health care crisis year after year, why be surprised? They’re not in office to serve you. The drug companies and hospitals had their bid in first.

When our public servants fail to get us out of Iraq, don’t take it personally. That will happen when The Money Party says so.

When citizens suffer and starve for days after a hurricane, we’re told they should have been better prepared. When levees and bridges collapse, it's an act of God. But when the fat no-bid contracts show up, The Money Party takes it all.

Unreliable election systems, citizens excluded from the vote on the basis of race and class, and questionable results don’t matter as long as the right candidates get in. We pretend to vote, they pretend to get elected, but there’s no doubt who is in charge - The Money Party.

It’s nothing personal. The party is just doing its job. Why be surprised or disappointed? It’s been happening for centuries. The more some have, the more they want, the harder they fight to keep it. Spread some around so they can get even more. It’s a rigged game from top to bottom.

We let this happen. We can change it. The first step is to name it, and we just did.

The Irish fought for 800 years to win their independence from the world’s most powerful empire. Generations came and went before the goal even seemed possible. They never gave up.

Now it’s our turn.

END

Note: This is the first in series of articles on The Money Party. Other topics include why we end up with such lousy leaders, why it’s so hard to get rid of them, and how the party manipulates the public debate with misleading terms and crackpot ideas that seem legitimate. Special thanks to John Arbuthnot and Jillian Hayroot for their input.

Permission granted to reproduce in whole or part with a link to the original article in “Scoop” Independent News and attribution of authorship to Michael Collins.

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[Me.]

1. The Story Is As Old As Civilization

As is the cure 'follow the money'.

[autorank]

7. The cure - think of others also...doesn't even have to be first and , oh yeah,

...walk to the walk - no political contributions, open field in elections, honest elections...

They all know what to do and the fact that they don't shows us the COMPLETE INSINCERITY of
the position and COMMITMENT TO CORRUPTION.

This isn't hard stuff, it just takes people of good will, 99% of them, and an end to the
farking Orwellian lies!

:hi:

[liberaldemocrat7]

11. The cure: selective targeted boycotts of these people's companies.

Scare them like NARAL scared verizon in 2 HOURS!!!

[Mnemosyne]

2. On the mark! The Money Party, argh!

Will this end without pitchforks and torches?

Is it still possible for us to take back the country peacefully?

Looking forward to the rest of the series, Michael! :woohoo:

[autorank]

8. We can take it back by calling them on their bull shit!

...as in, anyone who supports the current election system and campaign finance laws...anything other
than open and honest elections, full verification (100$ inventory) plus open elections with NO outside
funding...is a hypocrite.

Just get some leadership and we're over the top.

[Mnemosyne]

19. I'm in. n/t

[Me.]

3. Here You Go

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x1943928

[autorank]

9. Amazing isn't it! n/t

[Selatius]

4. This means that "health care reform" will come in the form of mandatory health care laws

Anybody who is of the working poor will either be dumped into a high risk pool administered by the lowest bidder or be given subsidies so that they can be made to purchase overly expensive health insurance.

The middle class? They get hardly any help with exorbitant insurance rates. The rich? They don't care. The people who run the health insurance racket? They sleep easier at night knowing that their racket has essentially been codified into law by fact that the government enforces people buying private health insurance. The government then works for the corporation here.

[autorank]

20. The government and the corporations are one - Reppin' for each other

You're so right on health care for "everyone else" - just ask the self-employed what the REAL cost of
health insurance is? Oh, about $1300 a month for a family of three... Welcome to the brave new world
of death by neglect. This is serious stuff but I guess it's better to spend a trillion on Iraq and get
about 1,000,000 killed. This bull shit is getting old isn't it?

[Spazito]

5. Until the US has public financing of elections and restrictions

on lobbyists' ability to influence through donations, whether in cash or in-kind, not much will change, imo.

Politicians will continue to be the "best that money can buy", sadly.

[HCE SuiGeneris]

6. Just more truth from you...

but, what would one expect? :kick:

I used to link to exactly this type of behavior in my old sig line...

Thank you sir for creating greater exposure.

:thumbsup:

[autorank]

10. THANK YOU

You know where you hear this a log (besides from folks here) - those who do now vote.

They've got it down but they need to get motivated and involved again. But this is just what they say,
why they stay away.

We'll get 'em!

:hi:

[Trillo]

12. This was never taught in school,

yet it's as old as civilization according to the first poster.

Why aren't facts taught in school anymore? Oh, nevermind....

[autorank]

13. My daughter was taught that The Compromise of 1876 was a good thing

...because it was a compromise. Go figure;)

[Kurovski]

14. K&R

Would publicly funded campaigns with spending limits be of any help? We could create sort of a "free speech zone" as it were, for campaigns.

Recommended.

[shifting_sands]

15. Pac-Man

A world of pac-man's has been created, eating up all the money, resources and life of this planet. You are right, it's been going on and on and we, as the people, need to take responsibility for our part in allowing it to grow, whether the growth of bloated greed takes place in the US or in Burma. I've wondered if deep down we let it go on for ad infinitum because somewhere we believed we could be rich riding on the coattails of the rich, so we let them buy us, we let them take our money, our time our earth, our lives.

How many millions of us would it take to go to Washington and walk into Congress and the WH, the FCC, the SEC, the FDA etc. and say "get out." How many billions would it take to walk into governments, banks, the media, corporations and say "get out." How many? No one is talking to us, not even the candidates, it's all done by TV and sound-bits and talk shows. They don't talk to us anymore and we just scream but our screams are not being heard at worst or pacified at best.

We have elevated what passes for leadership in business, government, entertainment and we actually listen to them and settle for the crumbs tossed our way because after all, someone might come along and save us. Many of us, including me, look around and only see Al Gore and desperately want him to get into the race, but Al Gore won't talk to us and won't even give us a yes or no (I wouldn't even blame him for the no) but he keeps the carrot dangling out there. That seems to be the trick of the "leaders" we elevate in all walks of life, "the carrot" and we keep running after it.

Autorank, your article is excellent and I am looking forward to the rest of the series and looking forward to a world wide awakening of where we have given away our power and how can we, not get it back, but how to impact so we can share in the power to build a better country or world model.

[Kurovski]

16. Kick. (nt)

[AtomicKitten]

17. K&R with a ditty

Please to enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rkRIbUT6u7Q

[autorank]

21. Enjoyed a great deal! Perfect...and with your Money Party T Shirt

you get a free CD of...:)

[catmandu57]

18. There is only one way this will end

and I can't tell you without getting my self in trouble. The Russians tried in 1917 it didn't work there I have no hope of it working here. I don't think we'll ever find that place where everyone is equal and nobody wants for their basic needs.

We only get what's in the best interest of the money, if it was in the best interest of the money to have health coverage for all, no wars, no inequality, education for all then we would have it.
As it is though we fight each other passionately for the crumbs tossed to us, hate each other for minor differences, all so the money can have more.

There is only one way to end this, but I can't speak of that, not yet.

[FogerRox]

22. What happened? Did I miss something.....

[mmonk]

23. Very good.

[autorank]

24. Thanks!

:)

[truedelphi]

25. For the last three or four months I have suspected that Hillary supporters

are in the section of society still protected from the catastrophic results of things like outsourcing and NAFTA, the policy of taxing labor not investment, and whose members still possess a retirement savings that lies outside the about to be wiped out by debt Social Security.

I feel you might also find Hillary supporters among those with executive level health insurance (or else so young that health insurance is not yet a priority.)

From where I sit, as a fifty something whose life savings were wiped out at a point last year when family member was ill, who cannot on her own obtain health insurance because of pre-existing conditions, etc., I want a Democratic candidate that understands those things and whose past actions indicate that he/she is not being hypocritical. Someone who says what they mean to do and then does it. (By the way, my pre-existing condition situation denying me health insurance first cropped up at the ripe old age oF THIRTY ONE! Over an extremely minor disorder.)

New material (re-edit)
In my mind, it is no accident that the one candidate that the media portrays as viable is Hillary. It is no accident that the values of the DLC and Hillary's values are not values that will shore up the lower middle class. It is no accident that the DLC and Hillary possess proclivities towards the Corporatist system of doing things. To the detriment most obviously of the lower middle class, but overall to everyone's detriment.

[truedelphi]

26. As far as the rant about the hurricane clean up - Gabriel Iglesias has it right

He's a young and brilliant comic and he remarked inhis comedy last night how George W is not given credit for katrina.

"He sez he's gonna go out and find Katrina. I mean, who else is even looking for her? And George W knows she's a bad ass - she's al kada - he knows that because they both begin with 'K'"