I see some calling for Socialism when all we need is reform

I have spent most of my time hammering Capitalism as purely Corporatism, no difference. Well, I was wrong. Whether I should consider that a good thing or bad thing is still up for debate inside my own mind, I do believe that our current capitalism is not working the way it should.

America was the greatest country in the world for decades, we might not have been as vast as the British Empire but we were a place where entrepreneurship, small business and freedom thrived and was nurtured. We were all told that the only way to live a decent and honest life was to work hard and we shall achieve the American dream. Now, the American dream is virtually gone for everyone outside the top 2%.

Our economy, our culture and our nation has been pillaged, raped and destroyed since 1896 by some of the most unpatriotic, un-American and heartless people in the world. A complete disregard for our Natural rights and the meaning of America, our constitution, our laws and our government. Little do people know but the Progressive Era(Fourth Party System) began in 1896, the very same year that corporations were allowed to enter the campaign game. Of course they were already involved earlier, but 1896 was the first time they made a real campaign for president.

Corporate control 1896

In 1896, a wealthy Ohio industrialist, shipping magnate and political operative, Mark Hanna became Chairman of the Republican National Committee. Hanna directly contributed $100,000 to the nomination campaign of fellow Ohioan William McKinley, but recognized that more would be needed to fund the general election campaign. Hanna systemized fund-raising from the business community. He assessed banks 0.25% of their capital, and corporations were assessed in relation to their profitability and perceived stake in the prosperity of the country. McKinley's run became the prototype of the modern commercial advertising campaign, putting the President-to-be's image on buttons, billboards, posters, etc. Business supporters, determined to defeat the Democratic-populist William Jennings Bryan, were more than happy to give, and Hanna actually refunded or turned down what he considered to be "excessive" contributions that exceeded a business's "assessment.

The Progressive era is more like the Big Business era, it ushered in a massive change in American business, culture and politics. The Progressive Era lasted from 1896 to 1932/1934, in this period we saw Prohibition, Income Tax, Federal Reserve, World War 1 and the Great Depression to end it. That is just some of the affects of the Progressive Era, when both parties worked directly in favor of Big Business. The Democrats did to a lesser degree as they tried to keep a Populist and rural attitude until Woodrow Wilson in 1912. The Republican Party was split among what it wanted to do, either continue in bed with big business or reform it.

So in 1901 the Republican Party had a new president, Theodore Roosevelt. He felt that big business was becoming more of a monopoly and was harming our nations business and government, so he set out on what is infamously known as 'Trust Busting'. This philosophy of his is what he used as president and was the foundation for the future Bull-Moose Party of Progressive Party which he would use to run for president in 1912 against; Democrat - Woodrow Wilson, Republican - William Howard Taft, Socialist - Eugene V. Debbs.

New Nationalism

The central issue he argued was human welfare versus property rights. He insisted that only a powerful federal government could regulate the economy and guarantee social justice. Roosevelt believed that the concentration in industry was not necessarily bad, if the industry behaved responsibly. He wanted executive agencies (not the courts) to regulate business. The federal government should be used to protect the laboring men, women and children from what he believed to be exploitation. In terms of policy, the New Nationalism supported child labor laws and minimum wage laws for women. Roosevelt supported graduated income and inheritance taxes, workers' compensation for industrial accidents, regulation of the labor of women and children, tariff revision, and firmer regulation of corporations.

These reforms he put in place were attacked from all corners but were widely supported by the public, thus giving his Progressive Party 27% of the vote in the 1912 Presidential Election.

His goal was massive reform of our government and our big business along the lines of consumer protection and social justice.

In 1933 Franklin Delano Roosevelt was elected president with his own philosophy and political package known as the New Deal. These set of reforms were put in place and most have remained in place until this day. One of the most famous and consumer protection oriented was Glass-Steagall, perhaps the most sweeping financial reform laws in American history. They were stripped away in 1980's by Ronald Reagan and finally removed by Bill Clinton in 1999(?).

I believe since Richard Nixon we have entered a new 'Progressive Era', except under this one we haven't had any Theodore Roosevelt's who have reformed the system in the favor of the public instead of Big Business.

Since the collapse of the Breton Woods system in the '70s due to the oil crisis which was caused by our unwavering support for Israel. Since then our economy one downhill with the wages for the middle class stagnating, a new depression, massive lobbying and electoral corruption, and on and on.

So who is offering us these desperately needed reforms? Is it the establishment Democratic Party? NO! Is it the establishment Republican Party? NO! So who have many people turned to? The Tea Party. They have turned to them for the reforms they are seeking, they see government as nothing more than a massive bureaucratic statist state which operates for the corporations. And what is there answer for reform? Cut taxes, balanced budget amendment, cut welfare, expand free trade and slash regulations. Hmmmm..... Isn't it exactly that mindset that has gotten us here in the first place?

All of those answers are the answers Big Business loves to hear, now owning the Tea Party establishment by Freedom Works and other corporations and the elite. Using the Tea Partiers who are only seeking change for their own special interests, manipulating them by using FOX and politicians and celebrities such as Hannity, Beck, Palin, Gingrich, O'Reilly and Limbaugh.

Now we are seeing a Right-wing Populist surge, I am sorry to tell you Tea Partiers, your ideas of reforms will never truly happen because it will always be corrupted by big business. Any dream of a Libertarian society is IMPOSSIBLE, they see your movement as the easiest to manipulate for their own interests because in the process of reform they can take over the politicians who will be needed for the reform to occur.

So what does this leave us with? Well... true Progressivism. Not the phony 'Progressive Era' bull crap of tax - spend - expand, but rather reform - redistribute - regulate. True Progressives such as Dean, Kucinich and Sanders are looking for just that. The Progressive movement which is being constantly attacked by this administration as Left-Wing lunatics.

Why do they keeping attacking the Progressives? Because they know we were right in the first place, they know that for real 'Change' to occur they would have to break the chains of big business, and they just weren't interested in that. But they keep wondering why their base isn't motivated!

Look we need true change and this true change will either take one form or another, the Tea Party Movement or the Progressive Movement. Right now it looks like the Tea Party will have their day in November, but what will happen to them when they figure out that their so called 'Tea Party Candidates' are just as corrupted as the rest of the Washington crowed?

We need real answers and real arguments, and this argument is not about more government or less government, it's about smart government or corrupt government. We can have a government Of the people, by the people and for the people or we can have a government Of the corporations, by the corporations and for the corporations.

We need so many reforms it is scary. If Democratic Party wanted to prove it is the party of the people then they must prove it, because right now they look just as bad as the Republicans.

First: Obama must disband all those morons he surrounds himself with, reshuffle his cabinet and replace them with less government and big business officials and more small business and consumer advocate type of people.

Senate: Harry Reid should step down and be replaced with someone more populist such as Sherrod Brown or Debbie Stabenow.

House: Nancy Pelosi should step down and be replaced with someone more in touch with the ordinary American such as Alan Grayson, Dennis Kucinich or Jim McDermott.


We have a serious crisis in America that needs to be addressed immediately. It is called the FED by Libertarians, it is called corporations by Progressives, it is called the government by Centrists. And all of these things lead back to one problem, the corruption of Big Business in government.

This must end, we must reform or we will die.

Enough with these wars that will bankrupt us, bring our troops home from all foreign military bases. Phase out all foreign military spending, stop supporting Israel, stop fighting others battles, focus on America and Americans first. Stop worrying about globalization and how anything mirroring protectionism will be called out as dangerous. Ignore that it is America and Americans first, above everyone and everything else.

IMO many that still depend on the "system" have not yet learned it. We have in fact allowed ourselves to be ruled by those that we chose to represent us, and have not.

The time has come for people to stand for themselves, and not allow ourselves to be puppets in the hands of those that wish to rule.

We have NEVER had a great president, WE have never had a great ruler, and WE will never have control of ourselves.

Peace.

we need a healthy mix of everything. Thats what this country is founded upon.

Nobody has a problem with Capitalism when they are the ones raking in the money.

Nobody has a problem with Socialism when they need a police officer, fire fighter, interstate, highway, city street, Library, or one of a thousand other public services.

And nobody else seems to know what the hell reform means.

It means we took too sharp a turn into the "Right" towards capitalism, and fell for it...now we seem to be over correcting the ship towards socialism, and we'll fall again.

It's just the American way, and it's happened like this many times in our past.

With absolutely no derision intended to the OP or anyone else; I believe that there already were enough rules in place to prevent or professionally resolve Katrina, 9/11, the GOM spill, and every other cluster we’ve managed to inflict upon ourselves recently. I believe that had a good deal of individuals managed to handle the task with which they were charged; that regardless of conspiracy, act of God, religious fanatics, or grumpy old white dudes with too much money and butt ugly wives, we could have handled this last decade or so with class to spare.

But here we are. Could we have avoided this pass; if you believe in prophecy, maybe, but probably not. If you don’t; the answer is still probably no. Are more rules and regulations going to resolve our issues? Probably not. Should an audit of the entire system be called for by the voting population of this country? I believe that this is starting to sound like a mandatory obligation.

First we must take a long terrifying look in the mirror. Why do we seek sanction and sanctuary from an entity outside of ourselves? We live in communities and so are drawn by natural laws to support and defend that place. Yet we as a species; not a country or a race or a place, but as a people are horribly flawed. We must resolve our conflict internally first.

Sorry, I’ve been drinking.

What needs to happen is that the community of American citizens has to finally see itself as a community, and start acting like a community. The "American Way" has become equated with isolationism (rugged individualism) and taking the collective nature of the human animal down to the smallest possible unit of community measure (the nuclear family unit) in order to allow the hundreds to divide and conquer the millions, through their own form of collectivism (the business group and business sector and trade market) as well as the top-down structure of the modern corporation.

This international corporate elite is the 21st century version of aristocracy, and they battle against any effort of the citizenry to gather in any numbers to give one another strength and security. Even something as benign as collective strength involving simple basic healthcare threatens the agenda of the corporate elite, since they've been able to supplant the government as the default refuge for the average middle-class US citizen and his/her family, which has enhanced the control of the corporate elite over the daily lives of the majority of the American public.

The private sector has also taken control of the actual functions of US government in the form of implementing the services of that government. The mounting cost of government programs is being funneled to these private contracting firms, since the US government has relinquished these direct services to private corporations since the late 70's. Even prisons are becoming increasingly privatized, meaning that convicting and sentencing criminals - in some jurisdictions - has become a corporate revenue stream concern, and no longer an issue of simple justice.

Meanwhile, the attempt to slow down this race to replace the community's own government with legal rule by corporate interest is being called Socialism, Communism, Nazism, and godlessness.

Taking one large offending multinational corporation, by way of a massive and disciplined product and service boycott of that corporation and all its holdings, would send a strong message that the American people are not going to allow themselves to become serfs to whichever corporate principality has been given reign over their lives. The "kill" would only take a year or so, and there are always equally serviceable products and services to choose while shutting down that corporate offender. Wall Street's psychopathic herd response to the boycott might even kill the offender off sooner, but who knows. The important thing would be for the American people to finally discover the power they have by finding each other as fellow human beings in need of some mutual support.

That would change everything and it'd take the corporates decades to get a foothold again.