“Every man takes the limits of his own field of vision for the limits of the world”.
Arthur Schopenhauer
A culture of greed and corruption are firmly planted in the halls of Congress and in the White House and obviously in Jefferson City. Too many elected officials see themselves as removed from average society and place themselves in an elitist position that includes voting to give themselves and their families great health care benefits while simultaneously giving the boot to our state's poorest children who were served by state health care programs (see state senate candidate, Scott Rupp). It's only welfare when it's not them receiving government handouts It's truly shameful that while Illinois is striving to provide health care for all of the children in their state, Missouri turns its back on the most vulnerable among us.
The President stated after the last election that he had political capital to spend and he was going to spend it. Expectedly, this capital did not include anything that is of interest to the middle or lower classes of our country and foolishly this so-called capital was squandered by fighting on behalf of the United Arab Emirates to take over numerous American ports -- what a disconnect this administration has with the sentiment of our land!
Now there are plans to sell off national forest lands including parts of the Mark Twain National Forest here in Missouri. I can see it now, no-bid contracts will be granted to Bush and Cheney's cronies at a fraction of what the land would bring otherwise and after these guys have cleared off the timber they will sell it back to the public at ten times the amount they paid. Remember, it's only welfare when it's not their friends receiving public tax dollar handouts.
I believe that very few Missourians support selling off public lands regardless of reason, but per usual we have no voice in this decision and, hey, Bush has political capital and he's going to spend it. Supposedly this money is earmarked for education. Don't you believe it!
For years Democrats were branded as "tax and spend liberals." Boy, we have seen that Republicans have lost all face when it comes to fiscal responsibility and clearly the phrase, "Borrow-and-spend Republicans" is far more fitting. Remember, it's only welfare when the money goes to social programs rather than corporate leaders who hob knob with the President and Co.
Let me see if I can figure out the neo-conservative argument one more time. I think it goes something like this -- low taxes spur economic growth while higher wages decrease economic growth. Free trade that allows U.S. jobs to head south of the border are good because it provides for lower consumer costs and environmental regulations deter investment. Government cannot do a damn thing right including public education so we might as well privatize the whole system. While we are at it, let's privatize the parks, prisons and the postal service too. Schools are just welfare because it's not their children who attend those schools.
Now, here is what I know - the lowest tax states in the union have the lowest standards of living (see Mississippi, Alabama, etc.), the worst schools, and poor wages. The high tax states have the best schools, more corporate headquarters and better living standards. States that have support for labor also have far better wages and better trained workers. Look around at your neighbors, chances are, one of them to your right or left afford their home because they have a union job that provides them with benefits and a living wage. Several states frustrated with the refusal of Congress to increase the minimum wage have taken it upon themselves to increase the minimum wage within their own borders. What was the result? A much better job growth rate than the rest of the nation! And what about those factory jobs leaving our land for southern climes where they can pay a slave wage and pollute water, air, and land at will? What are the consequences of all this job loss? Certainly de-industrialization and rural poverty are two deleterious costs to our society - not everyone is going to be a lawyer, despite what it sometimes seems. These jobs are needed here too - paying a living wage with benefits. How much cheaper did Nike's become once they moved their production from our shores to China?
Lastly, businesses benefit greatly from close alliance with government. CEO's may scorn government magnitude in the public eye but they are ready for any tax dollar handout they can get. Throughout history it has been government initiative that has had the greatest impact on societal progress not private interests. If the corporation could, it would still demand 16 hour days at low wages with no benefits. It was government that improved working conditions one mandate at a time, not altruism of the corporation. Again, I would like to point out that corporations are neither good nor bad; they are what we allow them to be. One role of government is to act as the arbiter of balance between corporate and public interests.
From time to time the government climbs completely into bed with corporations and public interests suffer. Free market usually gets quashed at this point because the business-government relationship hands protection to the business realm while telling the public that it's in their best interest because "prices will be lower" (or stock prices higher?). This is where we are at today. Businesses up and down the scale have turned governments up and down the scale into their own personal advocates to the detriment of the public -- and it's not welfare if the check is written to a major contributor of Senator Jones or Representative Smith.
How did we get here? Smoke and mirrors play a large role. Many good-intentioned voters saw clarity when the issue of abortion was made black and white some 25 years ago. This one issue has done more to erode public discourse than anything else. Republicans who have always been tied to corporate abuse of power and special legislation for the wealthiest in the country had to change the dialogue of the land if they were ever to make advancements in the House and Senate. Remember, before the perennial abortion issue came about, the US was leading the world in progressive legislation in many areas including environment. The world looked to us with great awe and respect back then and I think our country thought of itself more of a collective than the current nation of haves and have-nots. Faced with nearly a half century of minority status, Republicans clamored for political traction. Their spin doctors found issues that worked wonders -- to some extent it was frightening people that their guns would be taken away, but mainly it was by placing abortion above all else. Good people were turned away from offices that had no bearing on abortion simply because they were Democrats and by default pro-abortionists.
As a Democrat I am very pro-life; I want to live in a society that values our mothers and provides them with adequate pre-natal care and health insurance. I want our little children (and adults) to be taken care of by affordable health insurance and I want clean water for them to drink and clean air for them to breathe. I hope that they receive a good education and find employment that provides for their children even if that means government giving a helping hand in this matter. I hope for well-informed citizens who enter into government in order to improve things rather than feather their own nests.
Sadly, none of this will happen with the current culture of corruption that plagues our government both on a federal and state level. Remember, it's all of our welfare at stake and it's our family, friends, and ourselves who we are fighting for!
