Other than an occasional comment that I believe we are in the Decline and Fall of the American Empire, I usually stay out of political discussions. But I just read something that helped me understand what is happening that I thought might interest you.
I’m currently reading on my iPad “The Story of Mankind” by Hendrik van Loon and I’m up to the part of the Roman Empire. Van Loon has been describing the different forms of government and how they developed. According to him Democracy exists when people take an active part in their government: voting for wise people to lead them. When the people stop taking an active part the Plutocrats can take over. The Plutocrats, which translates to rich men, then decide how the government should be run to make the best profit for themselves. The result is the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.
Can anyone give me some examples of how this has been happening here? Anything like companies that default leaving their stockholders holding worthless paper but the owners walk away with golden parachutes? Banks that fail taking people’s savings with them while the top guys somehow have enough money to start over? Politicians with good pay and benefits while typical employees lose theirs? Or anything like that?
We appear to me to be living in a Plutocracy. What are we willing to do to try to get back to being a Democracy? Anything? Anyone?
TTYL,
Linda
ps. I forgot to put up a post yesterday to let you all know I am alive and well so here’s one from my files. I finally broke through that up and down weight bit so am now firmly on the right side of having lost 35 pounds. I had to add some exercise to my life to do it but I did it. So, I just keep on keeping on.
CONGRATULATIONS…wonderful news on the weight loss.
Paul and I have a policy of never or rarely talking about politics. But I will just say this…out of the thousands and thousands of people eligible to run for office, is this the best the Republicans can do? Oh MY! ~wheresweaver
Congratulations on the weight!! I knew you’d do it! Politics is certainly a fighting topic. No matter what you say someone else is going to convince you they are right and you are wrong.
I had never heard of the book but agree with the premise: the Plutocrats have taken over. Thank goodness my wife got an offer to work in Southeast Asia and we have settled in Bangkok, Thailand.