End Game: Where Are We Now?

END GAME: WHERE ARE WE NOW?

As you’ve read in the previous blogs, we have a severe crisis on our hands.

Trillions of dollars in equity have been stolen, funneled, and redistributed to the wealthy elite. The cost put average Americans out of their homes and out of their jobs. The entire world economy crashed, affecting workers all around the world. And what’s worst of all, the people who did all of this are still running amuck.

The most insulting portion of the financial disasters we’ve seen is that there has been no retribution to those who screwed the system. The executives who destroyed their companies and the investments of millions were able to gracefully resign from the companies, the governing boards often letting them go with millions of dollars. Though they were clear failures at the game of capitalism they were able to lose AND lose the lesson at the same time.

Angelo Mozello, Franklin Rains, Henry Paulson, Lloyd Blankfein, and all the other kingpins are still out there. And they aren't just fighting to stay out of jail. They're fighting legislation that would prevent these gimmicks from ever occurring again.

Even though America thought they had won with the election of Barack Obama, who had long and impassioned speeches about Wall Street reform, we were faced with a collection of government officials who came straight from the financial sector. "Government Goldman" became a common phrase amongst the enlightened few who saw the disturbing trend of Goldman Sachs executives going to work for government. A massive conflict of interest scandal was brewing as more and more political power went to Goldman. It's been said by many that they're not a financial firm, they're a political one.

What's worse, these same people who destroyed the financial world are all winning the hearts and minds of a select pocket of voters through their anti-government rhetoric and "free markets" catch phrases. Though they have bought excessive power in Washington, it isn't enough for them until they own it all. They don't want a government who tells them what to do. They want to keep operating the same way that they have been because it's the only way they know how to get rich. And it is a completely morally bankrupt system. The average citizen would never support it. So they need to abolish the government that would protect its citizens from such practices. They need to convince citizens that government is the enemy and that they are the solution.

Tea Parties will not stop. Talk radio will continue to praise "job creators." And a vast majority will still vote for anyone who says they came to Washington to "stop big government." The sad end to this story is that there is still an overwhelming majority who will vote for the interests of these few rich people and not for their own interest, including breathable air, access to health insurance, a tax system that is more fair to the middle class, and tight regulations for the financial sector.

What's the happy ending?

Well, the rich finally faced their biggest problem: no matter how much money they spent in 2012, the people voted. And they voted overwhelming against them.

Most of the candidates in 2012 that the wealthy elite poured the most money into all lost in the election. Karl Rove, the Republican super-genius, had less than a 1% return on his Super PAC investments in commercials. He had spent roughly $100M on ads against the Democrats, the biggest supporters of Wall Street reform. And in states like California, we voted to make the millionaires pay a little more. No matter how much money they spent to try and buy democracy, the people still had more votes than they did. And that will always be a testament to our country and it's ability to protect the interests of MOST people.

We still have a long way to go. But with people like Elizabeth Warren in the Senate to help regulate the financial sector and Barack Obama's continued disaproval of the way the financial sector has behaved we may very well see a new kind of America. Timothy Gheitner is leaving government, Ben Bernanke plans to retire, and Mitt Romney is sure to disappear into the cracks of history, never to be heard from again. We may actually be smart enough as a democratic society to look out for ourselves after all.

But that's only if we keep paying attention.

That's all for this semester. Thank you truly if you've been reading and I hope you've learned a thing or two here at Corporate Welfare. Just remember, the only way a democracy functions is if you use the voice it gives you. Let's not see the same mistakes repeat themselves again.

-Steve