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The US government has been run by the wealthy elites since before the Constitution was written. That's why we had genocide against Native Americans and slavery. Once modern, predatory capitalism had taken complete control, the primary enemy of the state became all progressives, socialists and communists. Why? Because they represented the…
The US government has been run by the wealthy elites since before the Constitution was written. That's why we had genocide against Native Americans and slavery. Once modern, predatory capitalism had taken complete control, the primary enemy of the state became all progressives, socialists and communists. Why? Because they represented the idea that we are all in this together and should all share in the bounty of shared work and work through the trepidations we face together. But that does not fit with the capitalist model, where the work is done by people who have no power, no control, and no say in government. So until capitalism is tamed, regulated and cut down to size, we will never have a progressive, socialist or communist anything. Those ideologies will remain government/elite enemy #1.
The first step, I think, is campaign finance reform. In short, eliminating "legal" bribes.
But with SCOTUS saying that "legal" bribes are a form of protected speech by corporations, there's little hope of real reform.
That's because the powers-that-be are very happy with the system as it exists. Short of powerful revolts, the system will not change. Meanwhile, the masses are kept occupied with work, kept divided by culture war issues, distracted by circuses, and fed an ideology of "work hard and you can be the next Donald Trump--or Bill Gates etc."
And, by the way, fear the Russians and Chinese.
The first step is changing the American system of government and governance that enables Vested Special Interests to buy access to that government's legal power, administrative authority, and spending capability so as to advance the agendas and increase the Power and Wealth of those VSIs.
Given the number of people who have been physically and/or economically killed, maimed, or enslaved as a result of Communism, Socialism, and Progressivism in the 20th and 21st centuries, these ideologies need to become "Enemy #1" of every human being on this Planet.
No other countries on earth have killed more people in other countries, overthrown more governments and caused more harm than the US, UK and Germany. Germany killed over 20 million Russians in WWII. How many people died at the hands of UK imperialists since the 1800s? Ask the people of India. The US has killed and displaced tens of millions of people since WWII. Socialism and communism are about empowering working people, so that is pretty much opposite of "enslaving" them. In fact, the US excels at enslaving people as low-wage slaves to tyrannical corporations, who also pollute the air, water and food supply of the workers. So I think you might have to rethink your conclusion about whom is enslaving whom. and which systems are the problem.
How many Ukrainians did the Russians kill with Stalin's Planned Famine?
How many Chinese did Mao kill with his various and sundry Great Leaps Forward, Cultural Revolutions, and so forth?
And exactly where in the USSR, Mao's China, Pol Pot's Cambodia, or anyplace subjected to European or Asian Communism over the last 100 years were "working people" empowered, as opposed to being enslaved?
Was the Berlin Wall built to prevent people from coming into Communist East Germany? Or to prevent those who were already in there from leaving?
The only difference between the American System ~ which is not "Capitalism" at all, but a variant of Fascist Mercantilist Corporatism [as was the UK at its peak of Empire and Germany under the Nazis] ~ and the Socialism/Communism of Russia, China, etc is Who the Ruling Political/Economic Class is. And how they became that Ruling Class.
My conclusion stands.
How many people have been killed by the US and UK over the last 150 years? Tens of millions. So your calculus is very, very biased, and you should think about that.