Who Wants To Play Monopoly?

 

I'm sure everyone has played the Parker Brothers board game "Monopoly" and tried to dominate all the properties and garner as much of the money as possible, but I'm not talking about board games. I'm talking about real life monopoly where a handful of individuals or corporations own the lion's share of the marketplace. Have you ever wondered who the real life monopoly players were? Well, if so, read on.

As many of you should know, only six corporations own 90%+ of all media. That includes movies, video games, publishers, magazines, newspapers, TV, cable, and practically all news outlets. That means just six corporations whose political and social agendas shape or influence our opinions on nearly every issue. To put it another way, those six corporations call the tune that we are forced to dance to.

While it's possible to find outside sources, most Americans either don't know where to look or they're too tired from work or just to frustrated to bother. Besides, most "go to" sources out there are biased one way or the other. There are too few non-partisan sources, such as this one, to go to. That means many American's turn to various distractions such at TV, videos or video games, movies, and so on; all of which are owned by those very same six corporations and reflect their political agendas.

So, if we weren't going to watch TV or play video games, what are we going to do? How about heading to the refrigerator for something to eat? Well, hate to break it to you, but you have the same problem. Four corporations control just over 50% of the market representing 79% of the groceries we buy. Not only that, just four companies---Walmart, Kroger, Costco, and Ahold Delhaize (the parent of companies like Food Lion, Giant Food, Stop & Shop, and Freshdirect) control 65% of the retail market.

As an aside, farmers receive only 15 cents of every dollar consumers spend on groceries. The rest goes for processing and marketing. Meanwhile, farmers received approximately $424.4 billion dollars in taxpayer subsidies from 1995 to 2020 (that includes $20 billion just under the Trump Administration). However, the majority of that money didn't go to the average small family farm. It went to the largest 15% of corporate owned farms which typically earn a million dollars or more a year.

In terms of meat processing, four companies---JBS, Tyson, Cargill, and  Marfrig---control  85% of the market while three companies, JBS, Tyson, and Hormel, control 66% of the pork market and four companies---JBS, Tyson, Purdue, and Sanderson Farms--- control 51% of the poultry industry. The same report points out that five corporations control 85% of processed pork market in Germany.

JBS alone received $78 million dollars in taxpayer based subsidies as part of a farm bailout during a trade war with China. JBS is 20% owned by the Brazilian Development Bank. In 2017, Brazilian authorities handed out the highest fines ever against JBS officials on corruption charges, including the bribery of 1,900 government officials. 

In terms of agrochemicals, such as fertilizer, four companies----ChemChina, Bayer, BASF, and Corveta own 65.8% of the market. The same companies, plus Limagrain, dominate 53.2 of the commercial seed market. In the world of "animal pharma", which makes veterinary supplies, medicines, and devices for farm and other animals, 58.3% of the market is controlled by only five companies, Zoetis, Elanco, Boehringer, Ingelheim, and Merck.

While Cargill, a global food company, is privately held, most of the other key players are owned by investment firms, banks, and pension funds; investing to the tune of $478 billion dollars in the meat and dairy market from 2015 to 2020. The major investors are Blackrock, Capital Group, Vanguard, and Norway's government pension fund! By the way, thanks to the blunder which is Citizens United, the food industry spent $175 million dollars lobbying government officials and making campaign contributions during the 2020 election cycle.

When it comes to the tech industry, which impacts nearly everything, just five companies virtually dominate the entire industry. Those companies are Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon, and Microsoft.

Between them, they control or influence around 80% of the technology we use every day. In fact, their combined wealth makes up 15% of the entire S&P 500. I bet no one is laughing at those high school geeks now! Of course, the tech industry, like everything else, needs electricity to operate. So who dominates the energy market?

The three primary sources of energy for the United States is oil, natural gas, and coal, with oil and gas accounting for 60% of all energy produced and used.  Renewable energy such as wind, hydro, and solar makes up a tiny fraction of America's energy source, and if the leading companies controlling the energy market have any say in it (and they do), renewable sources will never be a major player.

The industrial sector makes use of 32% of all energy produced. This is followed by the transportation sector which uses 29%,  which is closely followed by the residential sector which uses around 20%. The commercial sector, which includes businesses, hospitals, schools, etc., consumes 18%.

When it comes to production of all this energy, the largest global company is ExxonMobil, followed by Royal Dutch Shell, Chevron, Total, and British Petroleum. PetroChina and Sinopec make up the sixth and seventh spots. Others in the top 20 producers include a third Chinese company, CNOOC Limited (15th), Italy's Eni (10th), and Halliburton, a U.S. company, in 20th place. Together these 20 companies nearly dominate the entire energy industry.

You may be interested to learn that the oil and gas industry donated around $8,708,787.00 dollars in the 2020 election cycle. Of that Donald Trump received $3,773,155.00. Joe Biden, the only Democrat to receive money among the top five candidates, got a paltry $1,609,976.

The oil and gas industry gave $63.6 million dollars to the Republican Party while the Democrat Party got just $13.3 million dollars during the 1990 to 2020 election cycles. Thus far in the 2021/22 election, the GOP has received $8 million compared to the Democrat's $2.4 million. How's that for influence buying? 

With all that money, it's got to go somewhere! So, who are movers and shakers in the financial industry? The financial industry is highly diverse. It includes everything from banks, to fund managers, to holding companies, insurance companies (commercial and retail), to lenders and collection agencies. 

However, if we're looking at assets held or controlled, there are roughly 30 or so leading companies which dominate the U.S. financial market. The top ten (from tenth to first) are Blackrock, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, PayPal, MasterCard, Visa, JP Morgan Chase, Visa, and Berkshire Hathaway. Also in the top 30 are Travelers (29th), Capital One (23rd), and Goldman Sachs (13th).

Globally, it's a slightly different story. While Berkshire Hathaway is still number one, the next five companies are all Chinese (Ping An Insurance Group, ICBC Banking, China Construction Bank, Agricultural Bank of China, and China Life Insurance). Next is the German company (and the parent of my old company, Euler Hermes) Allianz, which is a financial conglomerate.  

In eighth place is another Chinese company, Bank of China, followed by JP Morgan Chase, and AXA Insurance. Other companies in the top 30 include 12 American companies, eight Chinese, four French, four English, four Japanese, two German, two Canadian, and a smattering of Indian, Italian, Swiss, Spanish, and Dutch. Notably absent are those from Hong Kong, Australia, Brazil, Mexico, or Singapore.

As we all know, nothing happens in Washington without palms getting greased in one fashion or another. As with any other industry, the financial sector made its presence felt in the 2020 election cycle. Wall Street executives, directly, trade associations, PACs, lobbying, and so forth, spent $2.9 billion on the 2020 election cycle. Of that, $1.9 billion went specifically to candidates running for a federal office. 

47% of that $1.9 billion went to Republican candidates while 53% went to Democrats, with $74 million going to Joe Biden. So much for the Democratic Party being one of the working class! If we were to include money coming from the real estate investors and insurance companies, along with the financial industry, the money spent jumps up to $250 million dollars to support Biden.

 Meanwhile, "The Donald", who made his living in real estate investment and development, received only $103 million from those same industries. Five U.S. senators received a combined $300 million, including Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Mitch McConnell (R-KY).

The same study showed that lobbying efforts by these same industries spent a whooping $932 million dollars for the same election cycle. Who spent the most? Apparently the top spenders were Blackstone, American Bankers Association, Charles Schwab, Susquehanna International, Bain Capital, and Renaissance Technologies. All I can say is that I hope they got what they paid for (well, maybe not).

Some groups and individuals would have you believe that America is "turning socialist" (or Communist. They use the two different ideologies interchangeably). Obviously if that was true, none of the above would be happening since socialism is the ownership of production by the workers and Communism is the ownership of everything by the state.

America is a Corportracy, a form of fascism, meaning a close partnership or even "hand-in-glove" relationship between corporations and government. As you'll note from the above, that's clearly what we have. Like any system, it has managers or overseers. Those managers are the uber wealthy Oligarchs who own or control these corporations. What they want they get, and it's usually at our expense.

Studies have shown that, on average, the wealthiest 10% of American's typically get what they want from government about 65% of the time. When average American's oppose a policy the super wealthy support (like the Wall Street bailout under President Obama), the rich usually win as they did in that instance.  The same argument can be made when it comes to tax cuts, low/no interest federal loans, bailouts, subsidizes, or foreign policy matters.

This isn't the work of would-be "socialists" or Communists. This is the work of an powerful and unbelievably rich Oligarchy where party means absolutely nothing except a means to divide us. They have an agenda and it's not the restoration of our former Republic or furthering the spread of democracy. This is about power and control. As George Carlin once said, "it's a big club and you and I ain't in it".  It's time we had our own club. It's time we stop playing Monopoly by their rules.

If you want to know more, please take a look at the links below. If you enjoyed the article, please consider passing along to others and don't forget to subscribe. It's free! Lastly please be sure to "like" us on Facebook or whatever platform you use to read A/O. It helps with the algorithms and keeps our articles in circulation.

 

Companies: dominating the market from farm to display case

America's food monopolies and power imbalances

Just a Few Companies Control the Meat Industry. Can a NewApproach Level the Playing Field?

GAFAM: The Big Five Tech Companies Facts

Lobbying spending of oil and gas companies in the UnitedStates

Disturbing data: The rich and powerful get their policiesadopted even if opposed by most voters

The Top 30 largest US financial companies in 2021

List of the largest financial services companies by revenue

Wall Street execs, employees spent $2.9 billion to influenceWashington during the 2020 election, study shows

Culpability: The Protest on The Capital and Who Is Responsible

Mea Culpa. It's a legal term which means accepting responsibility for one's actions. Despite four years of creating a volatile---even hostile--- environment, not once has the corporate media, including social media platforms, newspapers, or the networks stepped up and accepted responsibility for their actions; for creating a climate of fear. For dividing Americans and America as they fan the flames of descension but ignore responsibility for the fire it creates.

Not once has the likes of Nancy Pelosi, AOC, Schumer, and others offered a sincere apology to the American People for fostering and inciting hatred of the President and their disdain for not just his supporters, but of anyone who disagrees with them. Remember the sarcasm of Pelosi throughout his State of the Union address? Remember her publically ripping his State of the Union speech in half and throwing it away? Whatever happened to simple common courtesy or at least respect for the office?

The feigned "shock" and "outrage" from Washington officials smacks of second rate Vaudevillian shtick. Despite professing ignorance of the American People's anger, they throw around empty words like "the People's House", "it's not us", or how protesting a corrupt Congress or a broken political system is somehow "Un-American".  How could they not have known? Perhaps they were too wrapped up in their own self-importance or insulated in the vacuum of their self-serving bubbles.

How is it they condemn ordinary the working or middle class or small business owners for wanting not just their lives backs, but for wanting a political system which works: one where, at the very least, their vote---their voice---still counts for something? These Americans were protesting what they believed to be a fixed election following four years of being told their President was a fraud; that his election wasn't the result of individuals tired of a broken system which serves the wants and whims of a wealthy class of elites, but the result of "Russian collusion".

Yet, these same hypocrites never condemned the riots and looting of this past Spring and Summer.  No, they never spoke out against the arson, the violence, the vandalism of public and private property or the destruction of historic monuments. Instead, they asked why there wasn't more protests in the streets? They encouraged the rioters. They egged on the looters.

Was President Trump to blame for what happened on January 6th? Yes he was, at least in part. Certainly the language he used in his Tweets and texts didn't help. Trump wanted to show support for those who stood by him these last four years. He encouraged his supporters and others who were fed up with Congress to come a show their support, not just for him, for an America which is passing away before their eyes.

Did Trump encourage violence or to act out? No. That, it seems, may have been the result of Antifa and BLM who, according to some witnesses, were bused in to disrupt and discredit the protestors. Sadly for all, it seems to have worked.  But we're not hearing that part of the story. Perhaps it just doesn't fit the narrative. Even if not, who, if not the media and certain members of Congress, are not responsible for creating the climate of anger and mistrust? There's plenty of blame to go around. It's not all President Trump.

So, now we are hearing about calls to impeach President Trump again. However, this would be under Article 25...for alleged sedition.  The goal is not to remove the President from office. There's not enough time for that. No, the goal is to ensure that Trump can never again run for a federal office...like for President in 2024. They want Trump not just discredited, but destroyed so that he will never be seen a symbol of resistance by the people. 

Senate Majority Leader...I mean...Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell seems pleased with the results of the election, though not necessarily his loss in position. He seems even more pleased with efforts to impeach President Trump. In fact, he's gone as far as to openly support the idea since, in his opinion, it will go a long way in purging Trump supporters and the like from the Republican Party. Long live the Establishment, be it Democrat or Republican I suppose.  

The ruling elites of the Corporatocracy also want to send a message that no outsider will again challenge their grip on power. Anyone who runs for office must be a loyal adherent to the Status Quo; their party affiliation matters not. Both serve the same moneyed interests, and that's the way it will remain.

The inauguration of Joe Biden will take place as scheduled. It was always intended to. But it will be much more than Biden taking the oath of office and becoming the 46th President of the United States. It will represent the restoration of the Status Quo. The Oligarchs will be back in power after four years in shadows. The neo-fascist Corporatocracy, which has replaced our Republic, will be open for business as usual.

Biden will offer an olive branch and a call for unity, but don't assume that its meant to represent some form of compromise. His speech will be full of colorful phrases designed to press all the right buttons along with some subtle warnings. He'll utter empty words "family" , "patriotic", and a plea for us to "come together" aimed at making us feel nostalgic. What he is really saying is that we're back in charge and we intend to remain in charge.

It's said the history rarely repeats, but it often rhymes. January 6, 2021 marked the day that America crossed its Rubicon. Except there was no Caesar to cross its shallow river and restore the Republic or remove a bloated and corrupt Senate. The dice were cast, but this time it was the Oligarchs who won.

Like those of his kind, Biden will seek to mend fences and build alliances to help him secure his power. Stability is always the primary requirement for the corporate state. He will offer appeasements to whatever group he thinks will provide him with that stability.

I expect he'll open the southern border to illegal immigrants and call for so-called "reparations" to those who claim the bitter wounds of 160 years ago is the reason for their failures and not the result of failing to take advantage of the opportunities available to all. Something tells me it won't be enough. He may offer an alternative to the National Anthem or make America officially a bilingual nation.

He may impose a tax on the 2nd Amendment while curtailing the First. He's already hinted at it.Then too, he's always supported tax breaks for those of his social class over the last 47 years, so there's no reason to think that won't change. Zebras, skunks, and politicians rarely ever change their stripes. 

Corporations too will benefit as they always do when the elites are in charge of the public pocketbook. Those who countries which continue to support the Status Quo will benefit nicely as they always do, though the masses seldom benefit.  

As for the rest of us, the unwashed masses, we may see some crumbs thrown our way to buy our acquiesce to the corporate fait accompli.  It seems that protesting in the Capital is now prohibited in the Capital lest our followerless "leaders" cower under tables and behind locked doors. Should we endeavor for a kinder and more gentle outrage?

You can count on distractions too. They will need "something" to divert our attention from their sleight of hand now that they're back in business.  Bread and circuses have worked well these past 2000 years. No reason to stop now.

Meanwhile, the insincere indignation which barely conceals a gleeful cackle from the corporate media and political establishment will continue, at least for now. But don't hold your breath expecting their admission of guilt for their part in what's played out so far.

 

President Biden, Storming Washington, and What Kind of America Do We Want?

The Republicans have lost two important seats in Georgia and as a result, will lose control of the Senate. Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell will now be the Senate minority leader. Democrats are already in control of the House. Trump has held off conceding the election, though it's clear that Biden is the victor. Trump is expected to concede, but doesn't have to say that Biden won "fair and square". That's because it appears that he didn't. But there's a bigger story being played out here.

Americans have had mounting doubt about the legitimacy of elections going back to at least George W. Bush and Al Gore in 2000 (remember "dangling chads"?).  Hillary Clinton's defeat in 2016 sparked another round and launched a nearly four year investigation into alleged Russian collusion and a rigged election, amplified by the media, which was at least partially complicit.

 Ultimately, it was proven that not only was there no Russian collusion, but that the whole story was  concocted by the Clinton-Obama camp to discredit Trump (which also goes to show the extent those in power will go to keep power. I dare say they will go much further); an opening salvo to destroy Trump's credibility.

Now, with the 2020 election over, we're being told that China this time was directed involved in the election results by the Right.  We're told that the voting machines were rigged; that fake ballots were used; that the dead rose from their graves and somehow voted for the Democrats; that the vote counts stopped as soon as the Democrats had enough votes to win. Meanwhile, the victors, the Democrats, are telling us that the election went just fine. That our elections can't be rigged unlike the results in 2016.

Is any of it true? To be honest, I don't know. I've seen a lot of footage which reputedly shows illegal vote counting in process. I've read numerous articles about the reliability of some of the voting machines. We know the "Russian collusion" of 2016 was a hoax at taxpayer expense.

Frankly, I see no reason to think the claim of Chinese involvement is anything but utter garbage. Why would Russia or China try to destable the country when we are quite able and willing to do it to ourselves? It's just something else to cause us to doubt the legitimacy of our electoral system.

But here's the real issue. Americans, especially on the Right, have long believed that the we're losing our freedoms and I agree, although perhaps not to the extent that they do. We are certainly not a Constitutional or democratic Republic any longer. We are a defacto Corporatocracy, controlled by an small group of Oligarchs. We are a surveillance state which is just one major crisis away from becoming an all out police state.

We no longer feel we have a say in what's going on (academic studies conclude that's pretty much the case. Congress and the Presidency follows the dictates of the 1% and a relatively few very powerful global corporations). Therefore, we feel threatened. We have come to believe that we have only two arrows in our Constitutional quiver---the ballot or the bullet.

If we can no longer trust the ballot, the only remaining option is a revolt. Could it happen? Yes, it's certainly possible. However, with the tools of the surveillance state already in place, it would be hard to pull off. I don't think, however, that we are expected to pull it off. Historically speaking, the larger and more complex a society is, the more difficult it is to topple.

The best examples of successful overthrows of governments are the so-called "Rainbow Revolutions" of Eastern Europe; the "Pots and Pans" revolution of Iceland; and, of course, the Second Revolution in Russia following Gorbachev. The uprisings during the "Arab Spring" are another great example.  Even the recent pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, while apparently unsuccessful due primarily to the COVID outbreak, merit close study as does the Tiananmen Square uprising of 1989 in China.

These were sustained protests aimed at key government centers. They were largely non-violent since the State is always looking for an excuse to declare martial law and call out the National Guard or military. The protests sought to disrupt not just the operation of government, but the personal lives of those in power; to make it nearly impossible to function or for them to go or do anything.

They are also disregarded the official media which serves the interests of the Status Quo. The media's job is to divide the opposition into as many factions as possible in order to render it impotent. That includes manufacturing events to pit the various groups against each other (which the media has already been doing for awhile now). It is to discredit or vilify the opposition and its leaders.

The State will do everything possible to disrupt and infiltrate the opposition that they can. In the U.S. they've been doing that going back to at least the 1920's they infiltrated the KKK, Odd Fellows, the Socialist Party of America, unions, and other groups. During the 60's and 70's, it was the anti-war movement, the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), the Black Panthers, the Civil Rights Movement, the American Indian Movement (AIM), the Women's Liberation Movement, and so forth.

They threatened and attempted to blackmail MLK, Malcolm X,  Cesar Chavez of the National Farm Workers Association among others. Wonder whatever happened to activist unionism? Wonder no more.  It was "defanged" like all the other groups which posed a threat to the Status Quo. Heck, more recently they did it within Occupy Movement and the Tea Party.  The singular goal of the Status Quo is to maintain or expand the power and control of the Status Quo.   

Naturally, I'm not proposing anything. I am, however, saying that when people no longer have faith in the government; that when they no longer believe their vote counts, then the State leaves no option for the people they will, like a cornered animal, strike out, be it Left, Right, black, white, Asian, Hispanic, or whatever. I'm sure those in power are keenly aware of this, just as I'm equally sure they are prepared for such an action by the people.

Those in power will use patriotic sounding words like "our democracy", the "People's representatives" or "doing the People's business". They will tell us that protests against government "aren't who we are". That we are a nation of laws except they fail to mention that there are two sets of laws. One for them and another for everyone else. That speaking up is "Un-American". They will act surprised by any protests or acts of resistance. Perhaps some of it will be actually true. It's so hard to differentiate their lies from the truth anymore. 

Nevertheless, those in Washington are largely out of touch with what the average American endures, let alone those among the working poor or homeless. Anything to tug at our heartstrings so that we back down. Anything to obfuscate the corruption of government and acumination of wealth and power. It's the silk glove covering the mailed fist.

People, regardless of political ideology, race, gender, or religion, must wake up to the fact that this is not "our" country any longer. The ruling Oligarchy has near absolute control of America. One percent controls as much wealth than the bottom 90%. The inequality gap is the widest of any industrialized nation. Our healthcare and educational systems are among the worse. Our social safety net is inadequate at best (we rank toward the bottom when it comes to infant mortality and child poverty).

Most of our well paying manufacturing jobs have been outsourced overseas. We're now largely a low paying service economy.  Unions, once the backbone and voice of the Working Class are mute.  Our infrastructure is crumbling and yet we spend more money on the military that the next ten nations combined, including Russia and China. We are taxed without input. And now, even our supposed national voice---the election process itself---is no longer reliable.

There's an old curse---"may you live in interesting times". I'm sure the next four years will be interesting times without a doubt. The only question is what, if anything, can we do about it? What, if anything can the American People---Left or Right---do restore or rebuild the America we want to live in; that we want our children and grandchildren to live in? The answer is up to you.

 

"The Top 0.1% percent...owns about the same wealth as 90% of America"

U.S. Defense Spending Compared To Other Countries

How Does the United States compare with child well-being?

Addressing Child Poverty: How Does the United States CompareWith Other Nations?

The COVID-19 Bill: The Largest Stimulus Package in U.S. History

After almost two weeks of partisan bickering, it appears that we finally have a bipartisan agreement on a two trillion dollar stimulus package aimed at jump starting the economy following a near total shutdown of everything thanks to the COVID-19 virus. President Trump has already said he would sign the bill into law as soon as it hit his desk. This was also the third attempt to produce a bill which everyone could get behind.

This bill, the largest in U.S. history represents almost half of the current federal budget, includes individual payments up to $1200 per person (individuals making over $75,000 may be required to pay back part or all of it) plus $500 per child, $130 billion dollars for hospitals plus tax credits for "charity" assignments, a $500 billion dollar loan and loan guarantee fund plus $150 billion dollars for state and local governments to use as part of their stimulus program. In addition there will be a $367 billion dollar loan fund set for small businesses which will include a six month loan forbearance which will allow a temporary break in payments.

Of the $500 billion dollar fund, $425 billion will be earmarked for businesses, states, and local governments. $50 billion will go to commercial airlines, $8 billion to cargo airlines. $17 billion dollars will directed to companies deemed essential to national security. The fund will be administered by the U.S. Treasury Department. Additionally, the stimulus package also includes an extension of unemployment benefits for individuals laid off as a result of closures due to the virus and paid sick leave.

The package includes $25 billion in emergency funding to keep to U.S. Postal Service going (there was fear that the shutdowns could wipe out the USPS by June without the extra funding). The Department of Defense will be getting an extra $8 - $10 billion dollars in emergency funding as well. $450 million will be earmarked for food banks and food stamps. The bill will prohibit internet and utilities cut offs, along with providing more power to the FTC and state Attorney Generals to go after price-gougers (shame it doesn't include hoarders). Consumer debt payments will also be temporarily suspended.

The bill is the result of intense negotiations between Democrats and Republicans in both the House and Senate. Attempts were made by both sides to tack on funding for non-essential projects designed to help Congressional special interest groups such as money for abortion clinics, a provision to aid illegal immigrants and one to allow student loan forgiveness (repayments can be temporarily suspended), money for unions, and funds for expanded measures pertaining to environment protection were introduced by the Democrats.

Meanwhile, the Democrats demanded concessions from the Republicans that none of the money would be allowed to provide executive bonuses or for stock buybacks (as was done under Obama's 2008 Wall Street bailout) and restrictions on lobbyists. They also held out for extra funding for schools and universities (mainly to provide meals for students while the schools are closed) as well as WIC, child and earned income credits. While the Democrats didn't get the $15 an hour increase in minimum wage they wanted, they did get four billion dollars in funding to allow states to carry out election projects such as early and absentee voting under the Election Assistance Commission.

I suppose there's truth in the old saying that a "good crises should never be allowed to go to waste". Here we are, a month into the crisis, and we're just now getting a stimulus package put together. If Congress had done their jobs the way they were suppose to have, we would have had a package weeks ago and be that much closer to getting the economy back up and running. Instead, we had the usual petty bickering while both sides tried to sneak perks in for their favorite corporate special interest. Of course, I suppose you can't blame them. After all, these corporate sponsors fund their campaigns and keep them in power. It is them, not us, that they represent. So in that sense, they were looking after their constituents.

This is another reason that presidents, governors, and mayors should have line item veto power. A stimulus bill, no matter how imperfect, could have been on the president's desk weeks ago, and with line item veto authority, all those "add-ons" could have simply been removed with the stroke of a pen.

Another way to go about it is simply to require one measure per bill with no add-ons. Period. It would make it much harder to sneak through "pork" projects that taxpayers would be forced to pay, thus exposing more of the corruption by those who try. It would also cut back on lengthy bills, making them far more manageable easier to read and act on. No more, as Nancy Pelosi once said, "we have to pass it to see what's in it" nonsense.

Hopefully Congress will finally do their jobs and get a comprehensive emergency stimulus bill submitted to President Trump. From there, it has to be implemented which could take just as long as it did in Congress. Still, even the knowledge that relief is on its way will help. Meanwhile we all need to stay safe and follow the recommended guidelines. Remember, this too shall pass and we will come out of it stronger than we were before. If you want to know more about the stimulus bill, I've included some links below.


Senate, White House reach $2 trillion stimulus deal to blunt coronavirus fallout

READ: House Democrats Offer Their Own 3rd Coronavirus Response Bill


How the House Democrats stimulus plan compares to the Senates

Following The Money: Politicians and Money

Follow the money. We've all hear the expression, which appears to have originated back around the time of President Nixon and the Watergate scandal; made popular by the 1976 docudrama "All The President's Men". Basically, it just common sense. If you assume that everything goes back to money, then no matter how obfuscated the events are or how many people are involved, if you can track the flow of money, you can pretty much figure out most any mystery. Let's take Congress for example.

Did you know that 50.8% of all Congress members are millionaires going into office? The rest are all pretty much upper middle class or "near-millionaires"? Bet you didn't know that nearly every member of Congress leaving office was at least a millionaire. The total wealth of the previous Congress was $2.43 billion dollars, which up 20% over the prior Congress. To put that in context, Standard and Poor's index and the Dow Jones industrial average rose only 10% for the same span.

In case that's still not clear, how about this? The median net worth of an average American household is $92,950 whereas the average member of Congress has a net worth of $511,000 (2016). Let's put it yet another way. The average member of Congress has a net worth equal to 18 average households. Still think they "feel our pain"? By the way, just 5.8% of all Americans are millionaires by comparison.

Thanks to the absence of term limits and party based gerrymandering, the "Citizens United" misruling by the Supreme Court, along with their enormous wealth has created our professional political class; something our Founding Fathers vehemently opposed. In fact, for every 13 members, there is a "one percenters" in Congress (someone whose income is in the top 1%). There are ten House members and three Senators whose individual net worth exceeds $43 million each.

How about party? Which of the two sides has the wealthiest members? In the Senate, it's the Republicans. They have an average net worth of $1.4 million which the average Democrat's net worth is $946,000. However, in the House, it's the Democrats who have most money, but not by much. The average net worth of a Democrat is $424,000 compared to GOP which has an average net worth of $401,000. Taken together, the GOP has 64% of the total wealth in Congress. Sorry, but I'm still not sensing any "pains" for taxpayers yet. Nevertheless, here's a little tidbit which I found interesting, and it deals with wage equality; a very popular campaign issue as you know.

The average female in Congress has a individual net worth of $682,000 compared to her male counterpart who has an individual net worth of $465,000. As an aside, seven of the top ten wealthiest female Congress members is a Democrat with Senator Diane Feinstein (D-CA) leading the way with a net worth of $58.5 million dollars. By comparison, Darrel Issa (R-CA) has a net worth of $283 million. In fact, just 12 members of Congress have more than 50% of the total wealth of Congress.

How about some other individuals to consider? Let's start with Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi (D-CA). She has a net worth of $18 million with most of her wealth coming from real estate. Rep. Joseph Kennedy III (D-MA) is worth $18.7 million; mainly from trust funds. Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has a net worth of 10.4 million, which the majority of this coming from investments.

Rep John Yarmuth's net worth is $6.1 million with most of that coming from real estate. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) has a net worth of $4.7 million with most of that coming from investments. Rep Tom Massie (R-KY) is a pauper by comparison. His net worth is just $800,000 with nearly of it coming from real estate. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) is even poorer with a net worth of only $500,000 based on a mixture of real estate and investments. Nevertheless, none of these individuals are what most of us could consider to be "average" when it comes to wealth.

Here's something we also need to consider. First, an average member of Congress earns $174,000 a year (the Speaker of the House earns a bit more, $223,000). Congressional leaders earn around $193,000. The last pay raise Congress gave itself was back in 2009 (Congress has recently sent up a test balloon to increase their salary by $4000. The response thus far has been strongly negative). Secondly, most every member enters Congress already in the top 5% income bracket, meaning that most are already millionaires long before going to Washington.

Third, the majority of Congressional members come from the Business sector where they were typically senior officers (and owners) as well as sit on a number of well paying board of director seats. The majority tend to have come from banking, communications, technology, finance, pharmaceutical, and shipping backgrounds. A little personal tidbit about Congressional members is that they love playing the stock market.

The stock they most have in common is General Electric (probably because of its technology base and the fact that it's a key military contractor). In fact, 74 members of Congress have at least some GE stock in their investment portfolio. Their second favorite stock is Wells Fargo, followed by Microsoft, Apple, Proctor & Gamble, along with Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase, and other financial institutions. I'm sure that the fact that these companies have the most active lobbyists has absolutely nothing to do with it.

While the overwhelming majority of these individuals can't relate to the average American, we should also show them a little love. After all, running for office isn't cheap. In 2018, the average amount spent to run for a Senate seat was $10 million dollars. For a House seat it was $1.3 million. Of course, this doesn't include what super PACs or political non-profits contribute, which thanks to the Citizens United misruling by the Supreme Court, added millions more to the total cost.

Of course, we have to remember that the vast majority of this money goes to incumbents and rarely to challengers. Once elected, the average Congressional member is expected to spend up to 5 hours a day raising money for their party and for their next election (typically only 3 hours a day is actually spent on the "People's business". That means a lot of schmoozing with deep pocket contributors and corporate lobbyists.

Add in a lack of term limits, and you have a professional political class; politicians who are totally beholden to their new bosses---the ruling Oligarchy. If you think about it, it's a lot like dealing with the Mafia. Once you take that first dollar or accept that first "favor", you're hooked. They've got you. Party means absolutely nothing. It's all about the money. Amusingly, the colors assigned to both parties, red for the Republicans and blue for the Democrats, when mixed is green, the color of money. Remember that!

Meanwhile, the average American is pushed further and further from their rightful place as the master; replaced by faceless corporations which has created an Oligarchy. Gone is the notion of a "Citizen Legislator" as proposed by our Founding Fathers. The master has become the servant (or more properly, the economic serf). Washington has long ceased to answer to us, the voters. We've been made all but obsolete; a necessary inconvenience to be appeased every so often. The question, as always dear reader, is what are we prepared to do about it? How much more are we willing to take?

If we continue to do nothing, it can and will only get worse. Let's not let that happen. Let's find ways to come together regardless of party, gender, race, sexual orientation, or any other manufactured division. That's what the Oligarchy fears the most. That's why they try so hard to keep us divided. We must demand full transparency in government; term limits; an end to Citizens United and real campaign finance reform; an end to party sponsored gerrymandering; ending the cozy relationship between politicians and lobbyists, as well as stopping the revolving door between government and Wall Street or K Street (K Street is where most lobbying firms are located).

Personally, I would like to see newly elected individuals resign from their political party as soon as they're elected and take an oath to represent everyone in their district and state. No more "dialing for dollars" on our time, paid for by our tax dollars. I would like to see a 12 year cap imposed on all federally elected candidates. This means capping the amount of time anyone can hold office. That's six 2 year terms for the House, two 6 year terms for the Senate, three 4 year terms for the President, and 12 years for the Supreme Court and all federally appointed judgeships. If you can't get done what you want in the 12 years, then perhaps politics isn't for you.

So, what do you think? Have you had enough of being manipulated? Are you tired of being turned into an economic serf? Tired of being talked down too or being treated like government knows what's best for you? Had enough of being lied to? Of having politicians ignore the voter's instructions? I could go on and on and you know it. Let's come together as a nation and retake our government back while we still have time to act.


Wealth of Congress: Richer than Ever, but Mostly at the Very Top

One Member of Congress = 18 American Households; Lawmaker's Personal Finances Far From Average

The Richest Members of Congress Built Their Wealth This Way

Most in Congress Are Millionaires, But Many Were before They Were Elected

Amnesty by Executive Fiat

Well, he did it. Obama publically announced on the evening of November 20th that he's going to grant "executive amnesty" to approximately 5 million illegal immigrants and in doing so, thumbing his nose at Congress and flipping off the majority of Americans who've steadfastly rejected any form of amnesty for those who blatantly have ignored our laws. As for the thousands who've stood in line, filled out forms, took exams, learned English, and so forth...well you can guess what he's done to them. Democrat proponents have termed this as a Obama's "Emancipation Proclamation" . This is far from a "Emancipation Proclamation”, which freed slaves (illegally as Lincoln--ironically---didn't have the legal authority) in the States which left the Union as a political and military tactic in order to force Confederate troops to leave the battlefields and return to the farm fields to tend to the crops in order to keep their families from starving. Slaves in States which had not ceded were exempt from their freedom. Instead, this executive order is a declaration of war on the Constitution; the legal process; and the American People. There's more than a bit of irony and pugnacity in that Obama will sign his executive order in Las Vegas' "Caesars Palace". By design or happenstance, it couldn't be a more fitting venue.

The American Public has been adamant in demanding that the President and/or Congress put an end to any talk of amnesty for years now, just as they've been determined to see our southern border sealed to prevent not only the flow of illegal immigrants---thousands each month---from crossing, but also terrorists, criminals, drug related gangs, and as we've already experienced, diseases which this country had conquered decades ago and now puts everyone at risk. We just recently experienced approximated 60,000 children and their "escorts" (wink wink) being abandoned on our border with the full knowledge and at least tacit support of the Mexican Government and its military; they even shot at US civilians along the border as they escorted them into US territory. The Obama Regime, as I've previously reported to you, has already surrender parts of Pinal County in Arizona to drug cartels.

I also want to make this absolutely clear. Illegal immigration doesn't cost Obama, Congress, nor the federal, state, or local governments one thin copper filled dime. Nothing. Obama or Congress for that matter, can feel as magnanimous as they want. It's not their money. However, their "generosity" does, have a cost. Illegal immigrants cost every single taxpaying citizen in this country approximately $120,000 billion dollars of our money. According to a study done by the Heritage Foundation in 2013, the average family household of an illegal immigrants has a net deficit (benefits received from taxpayer financed programs less taxes paid) of -$14,384.00--that's how much of the tab you get to pick up. According to the study, after amnesty, tax payments would increase and benefits received would drop to a net deficit of -$11,455.00 per household. Once illegal immigrants become eligible of medical and welfare based programs, benefits received would rise to $43,000 of your tax dollars while taxes paid back into the system would only average around $16,000, or a -$23,000 of taxpayer money per household and there's around 12 million illegal immigrants. Obama's recent announcement applies to only 5 million of them.

Now, doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? And to think, you can't even write them off on your taxes as dependents! As an aside, according to the 2013 study again, amnesty would make illegal immigrants eligible for Social Security retirement benefits and Medicare, resulting in a net deficit of -$22,700 per household. Oh----I almost forgot to mention--remember those 60,000 children dumped on our border? Did you know it's going to cost you---the American Taxpayer---$760 million dollars to educate...and that may not even be in English. Feeling a little miffed yet?

In 2012, just under 41 million people living in this country were foreign born. We are, in fact, a nation of immigrants. Each of us or our ancestors came to this land for different reason--economic, political, religious, socially; some forced to come. Some came voluntarily . Between 2011 and 2013, some 447,000 individuals followed the legal process and immigrated to the US. On average, the steps to become a US Citizens can take anywhere from 6 months to a year; in a few rarer cases, a bit longer. But for those who want to make this country their home, it's worth it. So what does amnesty tell these individuals? Well, for one it tells many of them that following the legal route is a waste of time and effort. It tells them not to both with the health requirements, or learning about the history of culture of this nation, or even bothering with having adequate work or English language skills. And, the hope---even anticipation of amnesty will only encourage more individuals to come here illegally.

Amnesty tells them that obeying the law is not requirement to come to America. It also tells them and others that the American government, regardless of President or Congress or even political party matters; each are just as spineless as the other. For those seeking a democratic nation, where the People are sovereign, this isn't that place anymore. The government (and notice I didn't say "our") cares little if at all about the desires of the public. Its sole interests are protecting the economic interests of their corporate masters and gerrymandering their party (and hopefully themselves) back into office. All hail the Machine! Mussolini would be so proud.

Lastly, for those who want to point to presidents Ronald Reagan and George Bush and claim that they too granted amnesty, here's a little reminder for you. Congress proposed the Immigration Reform and Control Act or simply the Simpson-Mazzolli Act of 1986, which President Reagan signed into law as an Act of Congress on November 6, 1986, not as an executive order. This work bill included a provision to grant amnesty to some 3 million illegal immigrants provided they had been here a minimum of five years, no criminal record, a basic understanding of US history and government, and a working knowledge of English. It also made it illegal to knowingly hire individuals who were here illegally. Bush attempted to correct errors in the original bill (such as extending coverage of family members). Neither president acted by executive fiat as President Obama has.

So where does that leave us? It leaves us with a President unwilling to follow the Constitution ; it's Congress who makes the laws not the President. It also leaves us with a lame duck president who couldn't care less about the will of the American People. He has two years left to leave his mark and he doesn't seem to care how that is done. Any attempt at impeachment could be easily delayed until his remaining term in office has expired. Congress doesn't get off light easily here either. Neither the House or the Senate---irrespective of their political party--- has managed to put together a realistic immigration reform package. Instead, they act like a bunch of spoilt second grade school children. They are nothing this nation should be proud of. The American People have been clear and resolute year after year in demanding immigration reform which offers a pathway to citizenship without either amnesty or allowing those here illegally to "bump ahead" those who are doing it the right way.

We have also been equally resolute in demanding that the border be firmly secured and the border patrol be given back its enforcement powers (and budget); that those arrested for being here illegally be prompted dropped off at the nearest embassy for them to deal with at their own costs; that English only be taught and used in our schools, governments, and in the use of any taxpayer paid forms; that employers who hire illegal workers be severely punished, including fines equal to 25% of the income paid per person, suspension of their business licenses ranging from 30 days to permanent. Equally severe fines should apply to those convicted of aiding those here illegally as well, including churches and non-profit groups with loss of tax-exempt status for repeated offences. And finally, those here illegally should not be entitled to any taxpayer based services. These penalties may seem harsh, but they are the same penalties that are meted out in Latin America to those there illegally or who aid those there illegally. As for Obama, his actions speak volumes in his contempt for the Constitutional process and for all Americans.

Barack Obama enforces US immigration overhaul
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-30136245

Costs of educating new class if illegal immigrant minors
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/09/02/cost-educating-new-class-illegal-immigrant-minors-estimated-at-over-760m/

The Fiscal Burden of Illegal Immigration of US Taxpayers.
http://www.fairus.org/publications/the-fiscal-burden-of-illegal-immigration-on-u-s-taxpayers

The Fiscal Costs of Unlawful Immigrants and Amnesty to the US taxpayer
http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2013/05/the-fiscal-cost-of-unlawful-immigrants-and-amnesty-to-the-us-taxpayer

US Immigration: How Long Does the US Citizenship Process Take?
http://www.us-immigration.com/us-immigration-news/us-citizenship/how-long-does-the-us-citizenship-process-take/

Reagan and Bush Offer no Precedent for Obama's Amnesty Order
http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2014/11/the-weak-argument