Powered By Blogger

Sunday, September 30, 2012

Wealth Redistribution and Class Warfare; Republican Speak

     Since the election of our first black president, republican politicians  have begun talking about redisitribution of wealth and class warfare, two phrases designed to divide the nation even further than it already is. As in the past, they come up with any gimmick they can to keep the 1% in power (I have since learned that this isn't what everyday republicans stand for). And make no mistake about it, they do it for the money. All those campaign contributions come in handy once political careers are over. Let me also clarify that many democrats are doing the same thing, but there are a big majority of repubs and the repubs are unapologetic and unashamed in their doings. The dems are fewer in numbers and try to hide their greed and apathy towards their constituents. But there are enough dems to go along with repubs to accomplish anything the 1% want.
     Just recently the repubs attempted to defeat a veteran's jobs bill in the US senate. Why would anyone vote against a jobs bill for those who believe they are fighting for the security of this country? The reason is because they were ordered to by those who contribute to their political campaigns, namely corporations and the wealthiest among us (the 1%). These are the people who have benefited the most from our society. It was our armed forces and our diplomats that have paved the way for them to open up markets and make inroads into foreign countries. But they cliam they built their corporations on their own, without any help. And to add insult to injury, after our sons, daughters, cousin, mothers and fathers come back from combat tours in those countries, on their behalf, they don't want to educate them, pay their medical bills, or even to provide jobs for them. This is what republican politicians stand for.
     Lately they have claimed class warfare against the upper class and welth redistribution as if anyone in the working class has the power to fight against the very wealthy or corporations. This is a tried and proven way of the conservatives putting off on their opponents what they themselves are doing. For sure, if anyone is redistibuting the wealth it has been people like Mr. Romney and others like him, with his million and one tax avoidance schemes, by claiming tax breaks for corporations to ship American manufacturing jobs overseas. They say these tax breaks are so that they can create more jobs. The problem is that none of th those jobs are in the United States. Taxes on corporations and the wealthiest among us have been steadily declining for the last thirty years. But they say it's  the democrats who are guilty of class warfare when it's the conservatives who fight for those tax breaks and to increase the defense budget exponentially, while at the same time decrying all domestic spending. They don't want to hire more policemen, firemen or teachers. They don't want to invest in alternative energy (green jobs), and neither do they want to invest in the infrastructure of the country. Thgey don't even want to provide college loans at reasonable rates for college students because banks can't charge those high interest rates they've been able to charge since GW Bush was in office. They made it illegal for the government to bargain with pharmaceutical corporations for drug prices so that the corporations could make windfall profits. They have seen to it (with help from the Obama administration) that insurance companies are in charge of our health care. And what about all the subsidies to all those corporations that are already super profitable even without these tax breaks? How's that for wealth redistribution?
    So yes, there has been a redistribution of wealth in this country. But it is in just the exact opposite as the conservatives claim. And it's about time to put things back into balance once the new democratic congress is in place. Since the democrats claim to be on the side of the working class, we need to hold their feet to the fire. Balance the federal budget, but not on the backs of the working class, the way they are doing in Europe. Force the corporations and banks clean up the messes they are responsible for and see to it that those who can afford to pay more in taxes do so!

No comments:

Post a Comment