Robert Bridge - RT
25 February, 2012
With Russian presidential elections just days away, it is hard not to notice a marked difference between the US and Russian versions of ‘democracy in action.’ While neither system has worked out all the kinks of electing their leaders, in the United States the story boils down to the latest franchise owned and operated by Corporate America, known as the Democrats and the Republicans (or why not the McDemoReps: 300 million deceived!).
Somewhere along the road to a fun-loving place known as Democracy, America took a nasty wrong turn. And like every stubborn driver, it was too proud to stop and ask for directions. So, with the pedal to the metal, America has been careening through school zones, zebra crossings and police barricades, confusing raw motion with deliberate, rational progress. Now, it’s too late to turn back. America is not heading for Fascism. We are already there.
First, what is fascism? Maybe it would be easier to ask what fascism is not, or doesn’t necessarily have to be. Fascism does not have to be jackboots goose-stepping along cobblestone streets. Fascism does not have to be an egomaniac with a bad mustache ranting from the rostrum. Fascism does not have to mean the end of fun. Indeed, the most sinister political program can easily conceal itself behind fast food, circuses and mindless amusements. Keep the masses distracted, dumb-downed and drugged-up and you can get away with whatever political system you want.
To put it briefly, fascism is a black wedding between political and corporate power.
Perhaps the Soviets gave the best definition of this sociopolitical phenomenon: “Fascism is the open, terroristic dictatorship of the most reactionary…forces of finance capital."
If this definition is correct, then many other countries besides the US may be heading for interesting times. But since America currently has the largest global footprint it deserves the most attention.
However one may define his terms, one thing remains undeniable: US politicians and the transnational corporations are in bed together, enjoying the ultimate orgy while We the People are forced to suck it up. Naturally, those straddling the political pyramid do not want to relinquish their death grip on Power so they monkey wrench the political system in their favor.
By comparison, in Russia, corporate power and the oligarchs saw their political free-for-all come to a screeching halt when Vladimir Putin became president in 1999. Since then, there has been a definite line drawn between Russia’s political world and the business world, indeed, as there should be. This article hopes to show what went so horribly wrong with the American political scene, and how Russia may hope to avoid a similar situation in the future. And with any luck, we Americans can save our country from a looming disaster.
Welcome to the CDP, members only
Between 1976 and 1988, the League of Women Voters (LWV) was the proud sponsor of the US presidential debates. But apparently feminine sponsorship was not venal, male and testosterone-laced enough for these modern hard times. Thus, on the eve of the 1988 election between George H.W. Bush and Michael Dukakis, LWV relinquished their duties when it was discovered that the Democrats and Republicans secretly agreed to a "memorandum of understanding" that would decide which candidates could participate in the debates.
“The League of Women Voters is withdrawing its sponsorship of the presidential debate scheduled for mid-October because the demands of the two campaign organization (the Democrats and the Republicans) would perpetrate a fraud on the American voter,” League President Nancy M. Neuman wrote in a statement.
According to Neumann, the Democrats and Republicans hatched a campaign scheme “behind closed doors” that put forward 16 pages of “non-negotiable self-serving demands.” These demands include “control the selection of questioners, the composition of the audience, hall access for the press.” This is not unlike two professional boxers petitioning the World Boxing Association with the demand that no other competitors are allowed in the ring besides them – even if a more eligible contender demands a match!
Although the LWV said they had “no intention of becoming an accessory to the hoodwinking of the American public,” the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) that took over the duties of the ladies league certainly had no such misgivings. During the 2000 election, the CPD said third-party candidates would only be invited to debate if they had a 15 percent support level across five national polls. Yet without the ability to debate against the Democrats and Republicans in order to pass the magic threshold, the US public never gets to hear other political voices.
Before we continue, it is important to keep in mind that the CDP is not only sponsored by corporations, and overseen by the Democrat and Republican parties, but it is, in fact, itself a corporation.
Media Matters for the two-party system
A handful of US media empires (the Disney-Viacom-News Corp-CBS-Time Warner anaconda viper that is sucking the American brain dry) largely determine what is heard – and therefore discussed – in living rooms across the United States.
Although such influence means relatively little when the outcome of a basketball game or Super Bowl halftime show hangs in the balance, it is a totally different story when the subject involves what course our country decides to take on the domestic and international fronts. Since these media corporations are heavily invested into the present system, it is no wonder that political “mavericks” (Nader, Perot, LaRouche) who threaten to rock the boat get treated like common lepers.
Consider the media manhandling of Ron Paul, the veteran Republican who is campaigning to represent the GOP in November’s presidential race. Practically every single US news channel betrayed their loyalty to higher masters by glaringly ignoring the 12-term Congressman from Texas, who consistently ranks in the top tier of debate straw polls.
“This pretending that Ron Paul doesn’t exist for some reason has been going on for weeks,” railed comedian/political pundit John Stewart.“He’s the one guy in the field – agree with him or don’t agree with him – who doesn’t go out of his way to regurgitate talking points.”
But that seems to be exactly the problem. Paul, whose only radical act to date is following the US Constitution, is courageous enough to take on the corporate military-industrial complex (he would bring the troops home his first day on the job), audit the Federal Reserve (or even better, shut down the unconstitutional money-making racket altogether), and terminate welfare checks for ailing banks, corporations and foreign countries. In other words, Ron Paul is the only true conservative candidate out of the entire field of wannabe Republicans.
Paul’s fierce devotion to true American ideals, which has nothing at all in common with running around the globe planting the seeds of democracy courtesy of fighter jets and drones, is why, during the one-hour CBS News/National Journal debates in November, the Texas Congressman was granted just 89 seconds to present his political views.
Paul’s campaign manager John Tate sent out an email entitled, “What a Joke,” in which he stated, “It literally made me sick watching the mainstream media once again silence the one sane voice in this election….Ron Paul was silenced, in perhaps the most important debate of the cycle.”
Goldman Sachs, the bank that keeps giving
US politicians have been blabbing about the need for campaign reform since about the time of the Moon Landing. Yet not only does the situation not improve, it continues to worsen. The true depth of the situation came to light following the latest global economic implosion, courtesy of an investment banking and securities firm known as Goldman Sachs.
Most people already know the story: Back around 2005, Goldman Sachs was peddling billions of dollars of junk subprime mortgage securities to unsuspecting investors, while at the same time betting that the securities would tank. And tank they did. The elaborate scheme failed so impressively that it led to the implosion of the modern economy as we know it. Indeed, for all intent and purposes, classic capitalism as set forth by Adam Smith is dead. Now, the entire global economy – the little banks, corporations and assorted minions – depends upon the goodwill of central banks and the US Federal Reserve to lend high-interest financial lifelines to keep on paying the bills and avoid social upheaval. For all intent purposes, many modern states are being held hostage by bankers.
The once democratic, fiercely independent nation of Greece, which just approved an emergency injection of billions of euros of emergency funds, now finds itself a slave to the banking cartel. The Greek Street, however, which is furious about having to accept “austerity measures,” has not had the last word on the subject. But we are getting away from the real point of the story, which is Goldman Sachs.
How bad does the United States need campaign reform? Well, at the very same time Goldman Inc. was busy planting time bombs inside the global economy, they were also pumping millions of dollars into Barack Obama’s presidential campaign – to the tune of $994,795 – Obama’s biggest donor by far.
Is that why Goldman got away with a $60 million dollar slap-on-the-wrist fine for practically destroying the global economy – and perhaps capitalism itself?
Citizens United, but don’t get excited
It is, at the very least, diabolically strange that the banks, security firms and corporations that crashed the global economy in 2008 were rescued by a 20-trillion dollar injection of cash courtesy of the American taxpayers. Heck, the bankers and executives didn’t even miss their Christmas bonus checks following the “worst financial crash since the Great Depression.”
Meanwhile, Corporate America is reportedly sitting on $2 trillion dollars of hard cash reserves, while millions of Americans remain unemployed. But the story gets better. Not only were the criminals responsible for destroying globalization and capitalism as we knew it rewarded for their egregious activities, they have been handed unlimited power to influence the future of American politics.
Banks like Goldman Sachs no longer need to worry about public scrutiny of their campaign-giving habits thanks to the passage of a recent court ruling, dearly entitled, Citizens United. Sounds like a love story starring Keira Knightley, right? Well, it’s not. Not by a long shot.
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission represents a devastating blow to American democracy by the US Supreme Court that prohibits the government from restricting political funding by corporations.
One of the four dissenting justices out of nine, John Paul Stevens, said the ruling represents “a rejection of the common sense of the American people.”
“The Court's opinion is thus a rejection of the common sense of the American people, who have recognized a need to prevent corporations from undermining self government since the founding, and who have fought against the distinctive corrupting potential of corporate electioneering since the days of Theodore Roosevelt,” Stevens wrote. “It is a strange time to repudiate that common sense. While American democracy is imperfect, few outside the majority of this Court would have thought its flaws included a dearth of corporate money in politics.”
President Barack Obama condemned the decision during the 2010 State of the Union Address, stating that, "Last week, the Supreme Court reversed a century of law to open the floodgates for special interests – including foreign corporations – to spend without limit in our elections. Well I don't think American elections should be bankrolled by America's most powerful interests, or worse, by foreign entities."
Yet, given the separation of powers set down by the US Constitution, there seems to be little hope that Obama, or any other future president, will be able to reverse this devastating decision that further increases corporate power’s grip on the political reigns.
Clearly, the iron roots of this hardy political weed have burrowed deep into the foundation of the American edifice, threatening to topple the entire structure if given enough time. Meanwhile, US politicians are forced to pander to corporate interests if they wish to continue their careers.
25 February, 2012
With Russian presidential elections just days away, it is hard not to notice a marked difference between the US and Russian versions of ‘democracy in action.’ While neither system has worked out all the kinks of electing their leaders, in the United States the story boils down to the latest franchise owned and operated by Corporate America, known as the Democrats and the Republicans (or why not the McDemoReps: 300 million deceived!).
Somewhere along the road to a fun-loving place known as Democracy, America took a nasty wrong turn. And like every stubborn driver, it was too proud to stop and ask for directions. So, with the pedal to the metal, America has been careening through school zones, zebra crossings and police barricades, confusing raw motion with deliberate, rational progress. Now, it’s too late to turn back. America is not heading for Fascism. We are already there.
First, what is fascism? Maybe it would be easier to ask what fascism is not, or doesn’t necessarily have to be. Fascism does not have to be jackboots goose-stepping along cobblestone streets. Fascism does not have to be an egomaniac with a bad mustache ranting from the rostrum. Fascism does not have to mean the end of fun. Indeed, the most sinister political program can easily conceal itself behind fast food, circuses and mindless amusements. Keep the masses distracted, dumb-downed and drugged-up and you can get away with whatever political system you want.
To put it briefly, fascism is a black wedding between political and corporate power.
Perhaps the Soviets gave the best definition of this sociopolitical phenomenon: “Fascism is the open, terroristic dictatorship of the most reactionary…forces of finance capital."
If this definition is correct, then many other countries besides the US may be heading for interesting times. But since America currently has the largest global footprint it deserves the most attention.
However one may define his terms, one thing remains undeniable: US politicians and the transnational corporations are in bed together, enjoying the ultimate orgy while We the People are forced to suck it up. Naturally, those straddling the political pyramid do not want to relinquish their death grip on Power so they monkey wrench the political system in their favor.
By comparison, in Russia, corporate power and the oligarchs saw their political free-for-all come to a screeching halt when Vladimir Putin became president in 1999. Since then, there has been a definite line drawn between Russia’s political world and the business world, indeed, as there should be. This article hopes to show what went so horribly wrong with the American political scene, and how Russia may hope to avoid a similar situation in the future. And with any luck, we Americans can save our country from a looming disaster.
Welcome to the CDP, members only
Between 1976 and 1988, the League of Women Voters (LWV) was the proud sponsor of the US presidential debates. But apparently feminine sponsorship was not venal, male and testosterone-laced enough for these modern hard times. Thus, on the eve of the 1988 election between George H.W. Bush and Michael Dukakis, LWV relinquished their duties when it was discovered that the Democrats and Republicans secretly agreed to a "memorandum of understanding" that would decide which candidates could participate in the debates.
“The League of Women Voters is withdrawing its sponsorship of the presidential debate scheduled for mid-October because the demands of the two campaign organization (the Democrats and the Republicans) would perpetrate a fraud on the American voter,” League President Nancy M. Neuman wrote in a statement.
According to Neumann, the Democrats and Republicans hatched a campaign scheme “behind closed doors” that put forward 16 pages of “non-negotiable self-serving demands.” These demands include “control the selection of questioners, the composition of the audience, hall access for the press.” This is not unlike two professional boxers petitioning the World Boxing Association with the demand that no other competitors are allowed in the ring besides them – even if a more eligible contender demands a match!
Although the LWV said they had “no intention of becoming an accessory to the hoodwinking of the American public,” the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) that took over the duties of the ladies league certainly had no such misgivings. During the 2000 election, the CPD said third-party candidates would only be invited to debate if they had a 15 percent support level across five national polls. Yet without the ability to debate against the Democrats and Republicans in order to pass the magic threshold, the US public never gets to hear other political voices.
Before we continue, it is important to keep in mind that the CDP is not only sponsored by corporations, and overseen by the Democrat and Republican parties, but it is, in fact, itself a corporation.
Media Matters for the two-party system
A handful of US media empires (the Disney-Viacom-News Corp-CBS-Time Warner anaconda viper that is sucking the American brain dry) largely determine what is heard – and therefore discussed – in living rooms across the United States.
Although such influence means relatively little when the outcome of a basketball game or Super Bowl halftime show hangs in the balance, it is a totally different story when the subject involves what course our country decides to take on the domestic and international fronts. Since these media corporations are heavily invested into the present system, it is no wonder that political “mavericks” (Nader, Perot, LaRouche) who threaten to rock the boat get treated like common lepers.
Consider the media manhandling of Ron Paul, the veteran Republican who is campaigning to represent the GOP in November’s presidential race. Practically every single US news channel betrayed their loyalty to higher masters by glaringly ignoring the 12-term Congressman from Texas, who consistently ranks in the top tier of debate straw polls.
“This pretending that Ron Paul doesn’t exist for some reason has been going on for weeks,” railed comedian/political pundit John Stewart.“He’s the one guy in the field – agree with him or don’t agree with him – who doesn’t go out of his way to regurgitate talking points.”
But that seems to be exactly the problem. Paul, whose only radical act to date is following the US Constitution, is courageous enough to take on the corporate military-industrial complex (he would bring the troops home his first day on the job), audit the Federal Reserve (or even better, shut down the unconstitutional money-making racket altogether), and terminate welfare checks for ailing banks, corporations and foreign countries. In other words, Ron Paul is the only true conservative candidate out of the entire field of wannabe Republicans.
Paul’s fierce devotion to true American ideals, which has nothing at all in common with running around the globe planting the seeds of democracy courtesy of fighter jets and drones, is why, during the one-hour CBS News/National Journal debates in November, the Texas Congressman was granted just 89 seconds to present his political views.
Paul’s campaign manager John Tate sent out an email entitled, “What a Joke,” in which he stated, “It literally made me sick watching the mainstream media once again silence the one sane voice in this election….Ron Paul was silenced, in perhaps the most important debate of the cycle.”
Goldman Sachs, the bank that keeps giving
US politicians have been blabbing about the need for campaign reform since about the time of the Moon Landing. Yet not only does the situation not improve, it continues to worsen. The true depth of the situation came to light following the latest global economic implosion, courtesy of an investment banking and securities firm known as Goldman Sachs.
Most people already know the story: Back around 2005, Goldman Sachs was peddling billions of dollars of junk subprime mortgage securities to unsuspecting investors, while at the same time betting that the securities would tank. And tank they did. The elaborate scheme failed so impressively that it led to the implosion of the modern economy as we know it. Indeed, for all intent and purposes, classic capitalism as set forth by Adam Smith is dead. Now, the entire global economy – the little banks, corporations and assorted minions – depends upon the goodwill of central banks and the US Federal Reserve to lend high-interest financial lifelines to keep on paying the bills and avoid social upheaval. For all intent purposes, many modern states are being held hostage by bankers.
The once democratic, fiercely independent nation of Greece, which just approved an emergency injection of billions of euros of emergency funds, now finds itself a slave to the banking cartel. The Greek Street, however, which is furious about having to accept “austerity measures,” has not had the last word on the subject. But we are getting away from the real point of the story, which is Goldman Sachs.
How bad does the United States need campaign reform? Well, at the very same time Goldman Inc. was busy planting time bombs inside the global economy, they were also pumping millions of dollars into Barack Obama’s presidential campaign – to the tune of $994,795 – Obama’s biggest donor by far.
Is that why Goldman got away with a $60 million dollar slap-on-the-wrist fine for practically destroying the global economy – and perhaps capitalism itself?
Citizens United, but don’t get excited
It is, at the very least, diabolically strange that the banks, security firms and corporations that crashed the global economy in 2008 were rescued by a 20-trillion dollar injection of cash courtesy of the American taxpayers. Heck, the bankers and executives didn’t even miss their Christmas bonus checks following the “worst financial crash since the Great Depression.”
Meanwhile, Corporate America is reportedly sitting on $2 trillion dollars of hard cash reserves, while millions of Americans remain unemployed. But the story gets better. Not only were the criminals responsible for destroying globalization and capitalism as we knew it rewarded for their egregious activities, they have been handed unlimited power to influence the future of American politics.
Banks like Goldman Sachs no longer need to worry about public scrutiny of their campaign-giving habits thanks to the passage of a recent court ruling, dearly entitled, Citizens United. Sounds like a love story starring Keira Knightley, right? Well, it’s not. Not by a long shot.
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission represents a devastating blow to American democracy by the US Supreme Court that prohibits the government from restricting political funding by corporations.
One of the four dissenting justices out of nine, John Paul Stevens, said the ruling represents “a rejection of the common sense of the American people.”
“The Court's opinion is thus a rejection of the common sense of the American people, who have recognized a need to prevent corporations from undermining self government since the founding, and who have fought against the distinctive corrupting potential of corporate electioneering since the days of Theodore Roosevelt,” Stevens wrote. “It is a strange time to repudiate that common sense. While American democracy is imperfect, few outside the majority of this Court would have thought its flaws included a dearth of corporate money in politics.”
President Barack Obama condemned the decision during the 2010 State of the Union Address, stating that, "Last week, the Supreme Court reversed a century of law to open the floodgates for special interests – including foreign corporations – to spend without limit in our elections. Well I don't think American elections should be bankrolled by America's most powerful interests, or worse, by foreign entities."
Yet, given the separation of powers set down by the US Constitution, there seems to be little hope that Obama, or any other future president, will be able to reverse this devastating decision that further increases corporate power’s grip on the political reigns.
Clearly, the iron roots of this hardy political weed have burrowed deep into the foundation of the American edifice, threatening to topple the entire structure if given enough time. Meanwhile, US politicians are forced to pander to corporate interests if they wish to continue their careers.
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