08-24-2021, 07:19 PM
(08-24-2021, 10:57 AM)David Horn Wrote:(08-23-2021, 09:33 PM)beechnut79 Wrote: A half century ago today, August 23, 1971, Lewis Powell, who would later become a Supreme Court Justice, issued a memorandum advocating ever increasing corporate domination over many aspects of American life. It took a full decade, but in the same month of 1981 Reagan fired all the members of the Air Traffic Controllers union, which in many ways proved to be perhaps the final nail in the coffin of the middle class as we had to come to know it in the years following WWII.
Have created this thread for thoughtful discussion on the continuing impact of excessive corporate dominance in our lives. Do we have the will to begin reversing the trend of the havoc such power has garnered. Even if so, we have much to do. While sentiment that things are not right finally seems to have emerged, there is still work involved. Do we have the will to get grounded in the effort and build something of value?
I'm not sure how we get on a better path, because a return to the old is a non-starter. The economy and society in general have moved on to the point that the pre-Reagan era now looks and feels archaic. Yet we need to do something, and that something has to involve a permanent reduction in the power available to the monied class. Needless to say, we're in Congressional Amendment territory here, and the numbers for getting that done are dismal.
Powell understood the power dynamic. If the rich and already powerful are given a free hand, it will be exceptionally difficult to pry that power back into the hands of 'we the people'. I suspect this will be the next saeculum's mission.
It's a good question. I don't know. Congress decides, and so far it has not even gone half-way there. If the reconciliation bill passes, that would be a good start. If it's only the bill that even McConnell supported, then it's too tepid a start. Congress needs to hear from us on this. Please write or email or call!
I don't see constitutional amendment as a viable option. I'm not sure what "Congressional Amendment" means, but certainly for best results congress will need to pass voting rights, and will need to bypass or end the filibuster to do it, and that seems unlikely right now. The people will have to outvote Republican voter suppression and increase Democratic control after 2022 sufficient enough to reduce or eliminate the filibuster and admit senators from PR and DC. I have predicted for many years that the 2022 election will see progressive trends open up and move ahead. It seems unlikely now, but I will hold to my prediction and we'll see what happens. But I do think government policy is the key to decreasing corporate domination. Moderately-liberal Democratic Senator Klobuchar seems on the ball on this; today's monopoly power needs to be curbed, and alternatives to corporations that dominate markets made more possible. The people can also build more local community power.