Substance v. A Ghost

Many issues today revolve around a form of fairness and whether or not we are actually seeing fairness in our politically driven marketplace.  In reading Robert Reich's book Saving Capitalism (for the many not the few) it becomes clear that without rule makers having a sense of what is and is not fair in setting policy we lose the purpose for which rule making should be doing its job FOR society.  We are buried in Lobbyists and Lawyers making Legislators and the departments that make the rules for the marketplace unfair.  The Lobbyists and Lawyers, pretty much by definition, want rules that keep their constituents free of regulation.  They cry that regulation is a bad thing even though it is what keeps us safe.  They imply that it is no longer a "Free" market if you regulate it.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  They propose over and over again ways to free the market so that it is more efficient.  Right now they are winning and we are losing. Markets NEED regulation... without regulation we can be given shoddy products, forced into predatory arrangements and generally cheated out of our money.  Without regulation there is no market. 

If we look under most of the problems we face today there is a theme that says the Unregulators have stolen from us the ability to have a fair marketplace.  Subjects like Net Neutrality or Foreign Trade Agreements may not be on the top of the reading list for most people so it is easy to see how the Unregulators have rigged the game quietly while no one was looking.  In the case of what sorts of cars can be sold (safe or unsafe) or what industries are subsidized we do not have access to the agents of change even if we see what has to be done as individuals.  For things like bankruptcy laws or the insurance industry the grip of the industry itself is so tight that we cannot even get a thumb nail under the cure.  The entire interlocking set of regulations is too detailed for the average person to follow and fix.  This leads to frustration with the system.  We become easy prey for the politicians that say,"I have the solution," even though all they have is more ways to mess with the already broken system.

 For the most part it is Republicans who have corrupted the system with the help of a few Democrats.  That way you get to hear phrases like, "Bi-Partisan Support," when, in reality, it happens that something is passed with very thin margins that works against the normal/average person.  We have elected people through the deception of money buying our allegiance through advertising distorting the facts/truth.  It's the Blue Ribbon Committee that lies to us about the intent or the reason for making a certain decision.  It is the money under the vote that has preordained a decision against the good of the People.

So, there you have it, right now we are fighting against the money that has corrupted the system.  We are fighting for our financial existence.  We are fighting against the lies that pervade the media we used to rely on.  We are fighting for a livable community for the many not the few.  We are fighting against the 1% who own almost everything in sight and have worked tirelessly to own the rest.  We are fighting for our next generation and their right to live in a sustainable way, in harmony, on the planet.