#OligarchyAntiTrustTillersonMultiNationalCorp

[oneworkersopinion-blog]

Big Business

          How did we get hoodwinked into believing that billionaires and businessmen have all the answers? Even worse, how did we become so tightly held in their grasp that we believe everything they say, automatically giving them whatever they want. Like every elite group, they think the rules don't apply to them. In spite of anti trust laws, companies have been allowed to buy or swallow each other up at an alarming rate. We now have multi national conglomerates that can’t be contained in any one country. Exxon-Mobil even said they ARE a country with their own foreign policy! A policy that often conflicts with U.S. Foreign policy! These companies are amassing more and more power every day as they grow ever larger. They have taken over this country right under our noses, buying elections, corrupting Congress, and manipulating the average person. We have unknowingly been slipping into Oligatchy for years now. The will of the people is largely ignored now, replaced by the will of the few.

            I think the reason we don’t realize how much big business freeloads off of us is because it started gradually sometime back in the 1980′s. Over the years, it increased so slowly we didn't notice. Just think about all the ways they con money out of us: tax incentives, subsidies, tax loopholes, environmental cleanups from fracking, mining, and accidents, theft of oil, gas, water, minerals, (gold, silver, copper), timber and uranium from Federal Lands(our lands). They make billions while we get nothing but a few permit fees! I'm reminded of something I read recently. When big business gets financial support, it's called a subsidy;when ordinary citizens receive financial aid, it's called welfare! If these Corporations would pay for the cleanup of their own toxic waste (garbage), pay us a reasonable price for everything they take from OUR public lands, and pay their employees a living wage, we wouldn't need welfare and our national debt wouldn't be so massive!

             Nestle is a great example of  the theft of our resources. Nestle is so greedy, they took water out of California reservoirs even though California was in the middle of a severe drought! Do we get our water for free? NO, and we need water to live. Nestle just wants more profit because a billion +dollars a year isn’t enough! Are you angry and disgusted? You should be! I am.

              Now half of the voters decided one of this selfish lot should be allowed to govern. With the election of billionaire Trump, the takeover will be complete. He is trying to pack the Cabinet with business and Wall Street extremists who want to gut the agencies they will run! Along with an extremist Republican run Congress, he wants to get rid of all government regulations on Wall Street and big business. Do we seriously believe that they will regulate (police) themselves? You have a greater chance of being struck by lightning inside your home! You can be sure that they will run amok again, just like they did when the Bush Administration repealed the existing laws regulating Wall Street and big business. They came alarmingly close to destroying the economy completely! Now Trump and his sheep want to do the same thing all over again. Wall Street and big business are licking their chops in anticipation of more giant paydays. They are arrogant because they have nothing to lose. When it all collapses again, their friends will bail them out with our tax money and give them a free pass. You can be sure that this Congress will rob us again to bail these con artists out. 

                Over the years most people have been convinced by businessmen that rich people or anyone who runs a company is somehow smarter and more qualified to do a better job of governing than public servants with college degrees (usually law degrees) and years of experience. While business has thrived ruling itself, “"we the people “"have not! The main problem here is a conflict of purpose. Government and business have opposite goals. The main objective of business is profit, while Government exists to serve the people. These two goals are incompatible. Asking a businessman to be (think like) a public servant is like asking a mechanic to think like an artist. Neither one can do it because each one has a completely different perspective on life. They think differently and have different priorities. A dedicated public servant (Yes, they do exist!) asks how a public need can be addressed, while the businessman asks how much it will cost. While reasonable profit is a good thing for business, it can be a disaster for Government. We saw that recently in the Flint, Mich. water crisis and the Christmas Eve sinkhole that opened up in Frasier, Mich. We also saw what happened when prisons were privatized. The private company that ran the prisons neglected regular maintenance, ignored the prisoners, and offered big bonuses to wardens who kept their prisons full. What could go wrong there? Of course, this led to innocent people being thrown in jail to keep them full. Who couldn't see that coming? Things kept getting worse (corruption) until finally the Government had to take the prisons back. Guess who got stuck paying for all the repairs needed to restore the prisons to their original condition. That’s right, taxpayers! The same thing happened with V.A. Hospitals.  The difference was the much higher costs of clean-up and repair. They were a lot higher because of the horrendous conditions of the hospitals. Not only were we stuck again for businesses bad behavior, but our veterans had been subjected to filth, rats, bugs, and substandard care! Is this really the kind of treatment they deserve after being injured defending us? While the VA still has problems, the hospitals are clean, up to date and our vets get excellent care. The main problem now is inadequate staffing. Of course, the Trump Administration says no more staff is needed. They have put a hiring freeze in effect for Federal employees. And so it goes.

         These are the kinds of things that happen when profit (money) is the bottom line. Unfortunately, we haven't learned our lesson. People are still falling for the old privatize con because they don't think Government can do a good job. This is a lie circulated by big business (the rich) for their own selfish purposes. Greed can never be satisfied. That's why it's one of the seven deadly sins. The other reason they won't stop is that, like all con artists they think we deserve to be fleeced because we are stupid enough to let them do it! If we want to stop being used and abused, we need to throw big business out of our Government and hold Congress accountable. The truth is, big business is just as wasteful, corrupt, and incompetent at times as the Government can be. The larger an entity becomes, the more opportunity there is for these problems to exist. One hand doesn't know what the other one is doing and oversight becomes more difficult. 

          The good news is that we can get the Government we want if we are willing to do the work. Value the truth above all else and fact check everything. Stop being sheep , believing what your told because you like the person or it's what you want to hear. Listen to different points of view because no one has all the answers. Engage in meaningful discussions with a free exchange of ideas. Show Congress that we are their boss by kicking them out of office when they refuse to do their jobs. We have to start working together again and begin to compromise for the common good. Compromise is the foundation of a successful society.

           In closing, I want to make it clear that I do not hate businessmen or rich people. Business and labor need each other to survive. We all suffer when that relationship is out of balance. They need us to do the work and buy their products. We need jobs. What I object to is multi national conglomerates that have no interest in the welfare of their country. I object to anti trust laws that aren't enforced allowing these monsters to exist. I have no desire to live in an Oligarchy. That's not what I signed up for. I WANT MY DEMOCRACY BACK!