I used to try to convince people that their leaders are, for the most part, only doing the bidding of the highest bidder. As evidence I would sight the many ways in which the wealthy win or at the very least break even while the rest of us lose, or at the very least, lose by a little less.
I would allege that our elected official's claim like
Government is slow to turn like a cruise ship
only seemed to apply to the masses, because Government sure turns more like a speed boat for the rich. When you have billionaires admittedly paying less in taxes than their secretary, this is NOT by accident. This is by design as it took lobbyists, paid for by the rich, to get tax laws that disproportionately lower taxes for those whi can most-afford to pay taxes.
In some instances laws didn't even have to be changed to benefit the rich. It was simply the manner in which they were interpreted that sentenced an affluent dependent to time served and or probation instead of jail or prison time. There are entire books written about the two justice systems in America. One I have recommended as evidence was called The Divide by Matt Taibbi. As always, I provided the following disclaimer
Don't take my word for what I allege. Read the book, but don't take Taibbi 's word for such claims. Do your own research into the matter then look at the world or reality in which you live. Compare and contrast all of the arguments you heard or read on any topic and choose the narrative that best aligns with what you see say to say. More than likely, that will be the truth. If it's not the absolute truth, at least it will be your truth... Your reality.
Even with this disclaimer not a single person wanted to read the book I sometimes offered as a loaner, receive links to articles, interviews or videos on any of the topics discussed. Worst still, when asked for evidence if their refutation, none was ever offered. Their beliefs were always formed by some news report on CNN or MSNBC or Fox, all of which are either owned by some billion-dollar conglomerate or some billion-dollar billionaire. And, worse than that, they knew it was owned by a billion-dollar entity or individual but had no suspicion about what motivated the stories reported by TV personalities who made tens to hundreds of millions of dollars from those billion-dollar entities or individuals.
This blind allegiance was fine when it's impact simply meant a slighr downgrade on your family trip or one less visit to a fancy restaurant that year. Now, however, the stakes are much higher and the outcomes of such ignorance much more devastating. Their impacts no longer exist in the realm of luxury, they effect the lives, livelihoods and survival of millions. Unconditional loyalty to this political party or that news station has the effect of pushing more people into poverty, homelessness, starvation, illness and death.
When reporters do stories or increased homelessness, food insecurity, poverty but fail to delve into the root cause of these things, they are doing a majority of their viewers a disservice. When a news anchor can point out the growing migrate and refugees crisis, but not the causes behind the migrations are they serving the Public's best interest or tweaking rating for themselves. How is it that Americans can be so angry about the illegal immigration but unaware of the fact that American sanctions, immoral trade agreements, drug trafficking to support wars, wars, coupes in countries adjacent or one or two countries away from America's borders caused most, if not all of the illegal immigration? The simple answer is ignorance, but a more nuanced answer would have to include manipulation. We're told that Socialism doesn't work. It has failed wherever it's been attempted. If this were absolutely true then why would America need to sanction those countries that utilize that economic system. Why not let it fail in its own merit? Would allowing Socialism to fail organically provide greater proof that such a system is simply not viable? When the Public injests the news uncritically, no one raises such question. Instead, they question the morality, integrity and sanity if those who express incredulity.
Whenever I debated the state of the world in the past, I was labeled things like The Doomsayer . Whenever I asked what evidence those with whom I was debating had to the contrary, I was met with "You're crazy." or "I'm can't talk to you." or they would simply walk away. When asked what trends they could point to that indicated that things were getting better, I got silence. When I stated that I was optimistic that things could get better, but pessimistic that they would, people would smack their lips and end the conversation. Now, many of those same people are parroting the very same arguments I have presented for years back at me. This I don't mind, but it does bother me that they pretend as if they came up with the idea that maybe things are so good and maybe our leaders have NOT been looking out for us.
While it may seem petty for such a thing to bother me, there is a practical reason why it disturbs me so. You see, when people pretend as if their awakening was simply caused by an epiphany they had, it denies that fact they I also offered solutions to the problems the world faces today. In my book, I detail many of the ways our leaders have let us down, both here in America and around the Globe. I provided links to issue or problem cited in the book. Whether it be an article, video or audio interview, the reader could click on a link meant to strengthen my argument for any topic being discussed.
The links in the book were provided for all the parts in the book. Whether it was part one which provided a historical narrative about America's treatment if friends and foes or part two which detailed the current situation facing the American way of life or part three which offered solutions to mitigate or avoid what was coming, there were several links the reader could use as references.
In 2018, I wrote a book highlighting the problems Humanity would face if more power, wealth, and control was funneled to a small group of elite individuals, groups, or organizations. In my book, I provided solutions (from myself and others) to the inevitable problems and also a means for the Public to analyze, compare, and contrast the words and deeds of those we choose to follow against reality. In my book Solutions: Enough complaining. Let's fix America.
In "Solutions...", I provide the means for readers to disseminate information as provided by their news sources of choice, their elected officials, and any other authority they choose to follow. The book also offers a means to hold their leaders up, not just to a higher standard than is currently accepted but to one that would improve their lives and the lives of those for whom they care.
