Friday, September 16, 2011

America is the greatest country in the world - part II

I could write ad nauseam about what's wrong with the United States but it all boils down to the corruption of democracy by:

1) Infiltrating the government
2) Breaking the middle class
3) Controlling the people
    A) Fear
    B) Debt
    C) Media propaganda
    D) The police state
4) Dismantling the government

1.  Infiltrating the government

The government of the United States is grossly out of sync with the desires of the general population. Compare you political views here. Right now, we have a very pro-Wall Street administration.  Anyway, it doesn't really matter who wins the presidency because all the main presidential candidates are backed by private contributions from the primaries onward.  Different candidates have different contributors but when it comes down to moneyed interest versus the general population, the moneyed interests take precedent.  The Republican-Democrat duopoly from the people's point of view is for all intents and purposes a single-party system.

The other way moneyed interests control the government is the benign sounding 'revolving door' between industry and government.  But it's anything but benign. Rampant corruption describes it better.  It applies to industry and politicians and industry and government regulators.  It's the old, 'fox guarding the hen house' argument.  It's the most direct example of the breakdown of the US democracy.

The Shocking Pattern of Obama Repeating Some of the Worst of George W. Bush
From the Pentagon to the private sector
FCC Commissioner Approves Merger, Then Goes to Work for NBC-Comcast
An Updated List of Goldman Sachs Ties to the Obama Government Including Elena Kagan
Polifact Obameter - Promise Broken: Tougher rules against revolving door for lobbyists and former officials
Bush officials: Where are they now?
Inside Job: 2011 Academy Award Winner Best Documentary

2.  Breaking the middle-class

Weakening the middle class financially to create a poor cheap labor force. Wealth disparity has never been greater in the United States than now.  We are on par with so called banana republics. It hasn't been about making the pie bigger, it's been about increasing the percentage of the pie for the rich versus the middle class and the poor.  We've created a huge poverty class.  Ultimately, if we continue to destroy the middle class, the US economy collapses because it's the middle class who buy the consumer items that fuels the US economy.  It's truly short-term, self-destructive, sociopathic behavior and the elite need to be saved from themselves.

Nickel and Dimed
Our Banana Republic
Stock Tip: Be Worried. Workers are Consumers.
4 Desperate Ways the Hardest Hit Are Coping with Economic Crisis

3. Controlling the people
A. Fear
Fear of God, fear of retribution, fear of the police, fear of class warfare, fear of a terrorist attack, fear of nuclear war, fear of job loss, fear of losing one's home, fear of incarceration, fear of torture, etc, etc.  A scared populace is a docile populace.
B. Debt
Debt is slavery.  Whether it's a mortgage, student loan, credit card debt or government debt, debt is slavery.  The debtor is the master and the debtee is the slave.  Debt is the prime method of US conquest of foreign countries through the IMF, World Band and World Trade Organization.  People are similarly enslaved by debt.  Click on the excerpt below from Gary Brumback's, 'The Devil's Marriage' to enlarge:

C. Media propaganda
We have the Repubican's talking points Fox News and the Democrat's counter MSNBC.  The difference is that MSNBC counters with more truth and facts whereas Fox News' 'news' is often fabricated.  And the rest of the main stream media is only one step down from conservative propaganda.  After all, they are corporations, usually owned by larger corporations and fighting for advertising dollars from even bigger corporations.  Crucial strories of interest to the general population are often ignored by the main stream media.  We may take our religion on blind faith but we sure shouldn't take our news on blind faith.
D. The police state
It might as well be, 'the surveillance/security/police state'. It serves two purposes: create fear in the population and put down civil unrest, disobedience and uprisings. We are teaching the next generation of kids a higher level of authoritarianism.  For them, the police state will be the norm.
A prime aim of the growing Surveillance State
The US Media
Fascist America, in 10 easy steps
Video: F*** the Corporate Media
New Orleans: Systemic Police Brutality Exposed

4.  Dismantling the government

The only thing better than controlling the government is no government at all - for them.

The US has pursued this agenda is other countries under the moniker, 'neo-liberalism'.  It consisted of low taxes, privatizing government agencies, deregulating industry, opening up the country to US companies, removing tariffs and a Gestapo-type police force.  Good for big multi-national corporations. Not so good for the people.  Now this policy has come home to roost.

The Tea and the Pea

If the government cannot raise funds then the government cannot function properly.  From the US Constitution:
The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States
The government can generate funds with tax revenue or by borrowing.  We have seen the Tea Party fight any increase in tax revenue and we have seen the Tea Party fight the increase of the debt ceiling which serves to restrict the government from borrowing. We are currently experiencing a world wide trend of 'austerity measures' like cutting social programs and gutting regulatory agencies. President Obama has told us to, 'Eat our peas'.  Of course, with the difference in wealth of countries like the United States and Greece the only way the western world is all suffering 'austerity' all at the same time would be from collusion from secret meetings like the G20 summit and the annual Bilderberg summit.

Meet the "Pea Party"
Is Democracy as We Know It on Its Way Out?
5 Reasons Capitalism Has Failed
Here's Why Capitalism Has NOT Failed
Awareness of Bilderberg Cabal Explodes in 2011

to be continued...