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Until we remove the ability of Congress to create special interest legislation finance reform is simply populist propaganda. Why is it more evil for big business to lobby Congress than the people who benefit from the welfare state? It is evil for beneficiaries of any public policy, whether business or favored citizens, to enslave the rest of the nation for their own special interest.
Until we remove the ability of Congress to buy votes through legislation any such discussion is pointless.
C'mon. Are you people serious? Republicans and Democrate both take vast amounts of money from special interests. Pointing out one side's pandering only illuminates your own special interests. How is legislation that profits Boeing or the UAW any different? Either favoritism benefits a specific group while handing the bill to everyone else. This type of discussion again illustrates that Americans are nothing more than a bunch of thugs who use government force to rob one another...pathetic.
C'mon. Are you people serious? Republicans and Democrate both take vast amounts of money from special interests. Pointing out one side's pandering only illuminates your own special interests. How is legislation that profits Boeing or the UAW any different? Either favoritism benefits a specific group while handing the bill to everyone else. This type of discussion again illustrates that Americans are nothing more than a bunch of thugs who use government force to rob one another...pathetic.
Yet they continue to further their grip on the American political process. Corporations seek to expand the amount of money they can contribute to election campaigns.
Tightening the Corporate Grip: The Stakes at the Supreme Court CorpWatch*:*Tightening the Corporate Grip: The Stakes at the Supreme Court The Court will today hear argument on whether prior decisions blocking corporations from spending their money on "independent expenditures" for electoral candidates should be overturned. "Independent expenditures" are funds spent without coordination with a candidate's campaign. The rationale for such a move would be that existing rules interfere with corporations' First Amendment rights to free speech.
I remember the tussle about that movie last year. That's a very interesting case with very scary implications.
"The two sides filed their new briefs simultaneously, on July 24. Though quite short, as merits briefs go, they go to the heart of why government could or would impose restrictions on the political activity of corporations, independent of candidates but clearly influencing elections. On what theory, the two sides debate, can the government impose such limits? And, how does that theory square with the fact that corporations do have — to some degree, at least — a constitutionally protected voice to speak on political questions?"
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission - ScotusWiki (http://www.scotuswiki.com/index.php?title=Citizens_United_v._Federal_Electio n_Commission#Oral - broken link) Oral Argument Recap
This is old, but still relevant -- as long as we never learn.
Great eye-opening chart here; Im sure there's a modern update somewhere - same game, different names.
If a mutual fund returns 20% a year, that's considered unbelievably good. But in the low-risk, high return world of legislation, a 20% return is positively lousy. Why, there's no reason why your investment dollar can't return 60,000, 70,000, even 80,000%!
Here's how it works: With the help of a professional legislation broker (called a Lobbyist), you place your investment (called a Campaign Contribution) with a carefully selected list of legislation manufacturers (called Members of Congress). These manufacturers then go to work writing legislation: crafting industry-specific subsidies, inserting tax breaks into the tax code, extending patents, or giving away public property for free. In an assembly-line process that would make Henry Ford proud, the legislation is produced, and you (and your favorite industry) reap the benefits!
C'mon. Are you people serious? Republicans and Democrate both take vast amounts of money from special interests. Pointing out one side's pandering only illuminates your own special interests. How is legislation that profits Boeing or the UAW any different? Either favoritism benefits a specific group while handing the bill to everyone else. This type of discussion again illustrates that Americans are nothing more than a bunch of thugs who use government force to rob one another...pathetic.
For anyone on either "side" to accept this is wrong. We have to stop it. That means we both -- our own two illusory "sides" -- have to come together on this issue and force change.
"Lobbying" is simply a special interest fighting to get beneficial legislation passed. It does not matter who is lobbying, it is special interest that has nothing to with protecting freedom, rather it serves to punish one group while rewarding another.
Congress should be stripped of its self appointed power to pass legislation to benefit special interest. As long as it has this tyrannical power over all people, debating who is lobbying is pointless. The problem that our system has is that The States and The People lost the war of Federal Aggression. There is no check upon the Federal Occupational Force.
Democracy, not that we are one, is as evil as any totalitarian system that abuses the individual. A majority have no more a "right" to destroy the freedoms of individuals than a single dictator. That is why we had to draft the Amendments so that "democracy" would not destroy our freedoms. But Lincoln saw to it that these Amendments were only to be followed if it pleased the Federal State.
I don't understand your point. Corporate Fascism and bribery is not a prerequisite for a healthy and functioning democracy...on the contrary. Lobbying for a cause or an issue is legitimate, but when corparate big money is buying representatives, it is detrimental to our best interests, fair and competitive Capitalism and democracy.
"Lobbying" is simply a special interest fighting to get beneficial legislation passed. It does not matter who is lobbying, it is special interest that has nothing to with protecting freedom, rather it serves to punish one group while rewarding another.
Congress should be stripped of its self appointed power to pass legislation to benefit special interest. As long as it has this tyrannical power over all people, debating who is lobbying is pointless. The problem that our system has is that The States and The People lost the war of Federal Aggression. There is no check upon the Federal Occupational Force.
Democracy, not that we are one, is as evil as any totalitarian system that abuses the individual. A majority have no more a "right" to destroy the freedoms of individuals than a single dictator. That is why we had to draft the Amendments so that "democracy" would not destroy our freedoms. But Lincoln saw to it that these Amendments were only to be followed if it pleased the Federal State.
The good news is that the rule is still "one person, one vote" -- we have the most important thing.
I don't understand your point. Corporate Fascism and bribery is not a prerequiste for a healthy and functioning democracy...on the contrary. Lobbying for a cause or an issue is legitimate, but when corparate big money is buying representatives, it is detrimental to our best interests, fair and competitive Capitalism and democracy.
I'm sure you meant to quote irspow's previous post....
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I remember the tussle about that movie last year. That's a very interesting case with very scary implications. 
