These days, turning on
the tube and following our current political climate makes me feel like I’ve
become an emotional cutter. I
don’t mean to be insensitive to those who have battled or dealt with cases of
cutting and/or suicide, but I just don’t know how else to describe it.
As we continue to try
and climb out of the detritus left behind by the economic downturn of 2008, the
one thing that I can no longer stomach is the obvious evidence of an epidemic
that is emerging within our government: “politicking.” Impasse. Gridlock. Stalemate. Call me crazy, but these words seem
cancerous to the very idea of democracy. If you look up a garden-variety
definition of politics, it may convey something similar to “activities associated
with the governance of a particular country or area.” To me, the irrefutable
evidence of what we’re supposed to be—and what we’ve failed to live up to—reside in words like “activities” and “governance.” These words speak to action, or
the process of reaching a resolution—regardless of how smooth or arduous the
terrain. However, when we look at examples of good “politicking,” it’s funny
how these examples go hand-in-hand with examples of bad governance, or
ineffective politics. Politicking is the most threatening of practices in this
country, and it will only serve to cripple the people to whom our politicians
are responsible.
When so many American
families can do nothing more than stand idly by as their futures are enveloped
by a sand storm of uncertainly, those who continue to argue for less taxes on
the wealthiest Americans— and against more strict oversight over the financial
services industry—seem to be more concerned about political posturing than
repairing the damage. It’s akin to a builder who wants to plaster the cracks in
the walls and repaint, when the obvious problem is the foundation is faulty.
And this just makes me angry. It’s not so much the political posturing that
bothers me. It's the manner in which politicking is executed that speaks to a
notion that Americans are stupid. Let’s face it, some of us can be. But most
are just shadowing boxing with the endless political rhetoric until something
strikes a chord. Unfortunately, that siren’s song can be
dangerous because, if we are not grounded by common sense and a willingness for
the “foundation” to be truly fixed, we will ultimately be guided into troubled waters and smashed against a rocks.
Here’s what I mean...
Members of the
financial services industry unleash their lobbyists and dump considerable money
toward campaign contributions to thwart regulations that will mean less operational
“freedom.” Deregulation has been tried—with the purpose of spurring
consistency in the market and staving off or reducing periods of recession—but
has failed all of us. And the reason it failed is because our government
ignored the human element of it all. The human element determines if we as a
country can truly place our trust and future in the hands of a few—politicians, bank CEO's, etc. The human element can be presented in the form of honesty, integrity
and the desire to be the "best in the business" by doing the best for customers. At
the other end of the spectrum are the human elements of greed and opportunism.
Sadly, it’s this end of the spectrum that flourishes amidst deregulation (no one’s looking), bailout money and lower taxes. It’s like that
kid whose mom says, “I’m giving you one cookie, but don’t eat anymore until
after dinner. It will ruin your appetite,” but forgets to put the cookie back
on the higher shelf. The chocolate-chip-stained kid takes another, thinking
that mom will not notice. Soon, one extra cookie becomes an extra six or seven,
until it’s obvious that more cookies were eaten. What can mom (government) do about this? Well, she can just remember to put the cookie on a higher shelf to start (regulations). Also, mom can check the cookie jar from time to time (oversight). Or, mom can just wait until the kid pukes all over the green bean casserole at the dinner table (economic collapse). I don’t know about you, but I’d rather just put the cookies back on the shelf.
The problem is that we’re still not taking the measures necessary to meet the moment and win. Some call it the political process. Huh? In this case, it's nothing more than politicking. Terms such as socialism and “class
warfare” are examples of politicking. Make it sound threatening, dirty,
un-American to even think of such things. Here’s the thing, the proverbial wild card that is the human
element are governed by regulations all the time, as civilization has learned
long ago that encouraging folks to do what is just, in some cases, has to be more strictly
defined and supported by the law of the land. Our First Amendment right to free speech is also counterbalanced by laws that determine penalties when a person’s practice of free
speech/expression defames or injures someone else. Law, in its purest form, is
not made to hinder growth—it’s there to protect it. Law is that
“higher shelf.” But, when money is involved, it’s amazing what can sound dirty
as opposed to simple and right.
Don't get me wrong, politics in its purest
form is not a disease. It’s certainly not some sort of evil enterprise bent on
crushing pockets of citizens while shielding others. But, I guess the sword
itself would not as fearsome as the wielding swordsman. The only true remedy is
enlightenment. Following the recent Presidential State of the Union Address,
CNN political analyst David Gergen mentioned that, upon speaking with some
affluent Americans, many would not be opposed to higher taxes—so long as the money is being used in the right way. Don’t we all want the same
knowledge regarding our tax dollars? That’s hardly a tough request. So, if the
administration is “down,” and many of the wealthy are also “down” (thank you,
Warren Buffett), then where does the problem lie? In a word: politicking. Is there a disagreement on what is the "right way?" Improving a failing education system, making healthcare affordable for all and developing programs that support new a emerging industries in the U.S., and marrying those industries with an enthusiastic workforce. Sounds good to me. These are the initiatives that tax dollars should be funding. Just like better roads and bridges, we all benefit in the end. And, lest we forget, we get some of that shit back each year! Please tell me if I'm missing something.
Politicking means
speaking to small business owners and middle-income families and proclaiming
with teary eyes that “we’re fighting for you,” when the reality is they
could give two shits. If they did, the process on The Hill would be much
smoother than it is now. Having been in a position to help run small
businesses, I take offense to the Alderman Davis-way in which politicking
politicians say, “You’re stupid. Sit back and let us handle this for you.”
Anyone running a small
business (or any business, for that matter) knows that, when tough economic
times hit, you have to do two things: 1. Stop the hemorrhaging. 2. Fix
the wound.
Stop the hemorrhaging: First, make decisions regarding what the
company can no longer afford to do: find ways to save the company money, which
are tough choices like reducing compensation and benefits, downsizing and finding cheaper
ways to keep operations going.
Fix the wound: Simply, find ways to continue to make money. This may mean
expanding or altering the current business model to find new avenues to
increase revenue.
The reality is that
you don’t have to be a small business owner/leader to connect these dots.
Millions of American families are facing the same decisions every day:
Stop the hemorrhaging: First, make decisions regarding what the
family can no longer afford: cut back on, or cut out “luxuries” and find ways to address needs
of the family in less expensive ways.
Fix the wound: Simply, get a job. If you are currently employed, find a new job that pays more.
Sadly, the level of
stalemate that exists regarding the important issues—and their remedies— proves that politicking politicians have no true connection with the middleclass in
America. If they did, they would also realize that the solution of increasing
taxes on the wealthy would go a long way toward solving the problem:
Stop the hemorrhaging: First, make decisions regarding what the country
can no longer afford. That may mean spending cuts, which has happened already. But it should also mean eliminating tax breaks that do not necessarily lead to stimulating
our economy. Without a true programmatic approach for stimulating the economy (like tax
breaks and other incentives received by companies as a result of increased
investments in the U.S. that boost the economy), companies will continue to
look at tax breaks as found money...and spend it that way.
Fix the wound: Simply, increased taxes means more money pumped into the economy
faster than anything else can achieve right now.
If you stop the
hemorrhaging without fixing the wound, death is still a possibility. Yes, on
the surface, I agree that this country can no longer afford low tax rates for
the wealthy. We have an unemployment rate that’s like a daily punch in the gut
whenever you repeat it. We’re recovering from nearly a decade spent at war. We
have an overall economy that is still struggling to rebound even after the Wall Street slap-around and rescuing the auto industry. American companies have to re-invest in America.
Do I hate wealthy people? Hell
no. I admire what they’ve accomplished—given the human
elements from which they draw inspiration— and, whenever possible, take the
lessons I’ve learned from them and apply it to my life. But, in laymen’s terms,
shit does not add up.
Now, I get the math of
it. Fourteen percent of $30
million is a hell of a lot more than fifteen percent of $65,000. However, when you look at the disparity, in terms of overall
disposable income, it’s hard to feel too bad about raising taxes on wealthy
Americans at a time when the country needs recovery dough. Even with a twenty-nine
percent tax rate, a person making $1 million a year could achieve in a few
years what middle-income Americans would need a working lifetime to achieve:
·
Buy a home…and pay it off
·
Buy a car, or two…and pay them off
·
Establish a good nest egg for retirement
·
Set aside money for college tuition(s) without
resorting to student loans
The principle issue is
that, through the use of credit, these achievements become far more costly to
middle-income Americans because of mounting interest paid on loans. Add to this the
challenge of addressing everyday needs such as running a home, paying for kids
to go to better schools and the unforeseen, it’s a wonder middle-income
Americans made it as far as they did before 2008.
Many will argue that, without
tax reform, increasing taxes on the wealthy may not mean much revenue to the
government. It's a small portion of the whole, after all. I don't know about that, but struggling families and small businesses tend to live by the motto that "every little bit helps." Politicking politicians should take heed. The economic debacle was nearly two decades in the making, slowly draining dough from America. If you pump some money back in at a steady rate, real progress can be made in a quarter of the time. I agree that the Leona Helmsley's and Wesley Snipes's of the world also need to be figuratively flogged, as well as any who are finding ways to "get by" the white beard of Uncle Sam. Again, we have to fix the wound any and every way we can. If we sit around and do nothing more, death is still a possibility.
Politicking politicians should stop talking to the rest of us like we're stupid, and show us that they're smarter than we think they are. Swap out impasse and gridlock for action and resolution—no matter how smooth or arduous the task—and help this country to avoid crashing onto the rocks. Remember, our taxes are also paying their salaries.
Can we avoid the siren's song? Can Obama and members of Congress become our Odysseus of this economic Odyssey? God, I hope so. More than hope, I still believe that the voices of many will triumph over the songs of a few. I have to believe it because once belief is gone, the voices will become irrelevant. And death will not only be possible, it will be inevitable.
