From NBC:We live in a democracy. The word democracy comes from the ancient Greek words demos kratia, rule of the people. It means, according to the dictionary, "a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them…"
The ancient democrats would be aghast if they could see some of the things that pass for democracy today. Especially the influence of money from powerful, rich people to virtually buy elective office. And, sadly, we in the press regard the money-raising ability of candidates as of paramount importance. A candidate’s qualifications to serve in high office don’t seem to matter as much.
Abraham Lincoln spoke at Gettysburg of his ideal of a government of the people, by the people and for the people. He didn’t mean government of the fat cats and by the fat cats. With all due respect to the feline family -- and I happen to love cats -- Lincoln was an apostle of democracy in a purer sense.
The machinations of millionaires and billionaires are foreign to what he believed. The lack of strict laws governing campaign expenditures continues to be a disgrace to our country.
26 comments:
For the Love of Money :( people will do anything:(
we need heroes to fix this city, these states and our country...not these zeroes who run and keep getting elected
where are the heroes?
This article hits the nail on the head. This is exactly why you should NOT vote Republican.
Sorry NBC, this is the way things were always run with the exception of the midcentury decades of the past century.
That we have let ourselves drift back to an earlier coarser age of substandard government, housing, economy, etc is really our fault.
All we care about is bullshit like Linsey Lohan and Michael Jackson and Lebron and Kate and her brood.
Its our fault.
@Anonymous2
You do know there are instances where Democrats have also used the influence of money to buy an election. Your comment will simply start a discussion of bringing up the past, to prove one party is better than another party. We should learn from the past and vote smart, which might mean voting for the other party.
Instead of being anti-Democrat or anti-Republican wouldn't it be better to vote against the candidate whom you think is buying an election.
I believe that in the ancient Athenian democracy that flourished under Pericles in about 400 BC...you had to be a landowner in order to vote.
Renters, tenants & slaves couldn't cast a ballot (or stone) in the Agora.
So the fat cats ruled the roost even back then.
Bravo "honest" Abe Lincoln.
Rest in peace (if you can).
Amen!
The Federalist Papers should be required reading for citizenship.
I'll give the author, Gabe Pressman, just the tiniest bit of credit for writing the obvious. But he manages even to get that somewhat wrong.
- It's not money that corrupts, it's tyrannical power. An ethical person can be very wealthy and use that wealth for benevolence. In the case of campaign funds, what we basically have here is a problem of the "Career Politician." Ben Franklin made some very astute commentary on this very subject.
- The United States of America is not a Democracy! It's a Federal Republic! We only elect representatives through the democratic process of voting. The people do not have a direct participation in the government. A Democracy is the direct participation of the people in the government, as was in ancient Grecian Athens. The Founders understood the dangers and fickle nature of mob rule with this form of government and wisely chose not to emulate it.
- The haves and have nots in society is a constant of human nature. We are not all created equal, only equal under the eyes of the law.
The only time the Greeks tried pure democracy it was a disaster. Literally mob rule. We are getting closer to that all the time in the US. As we close in to 50% of all households not paying federal taxes, people can vote for candidate that will dole out favors and cash and they will be immune to the consequences of their vote. Kind of how Charlie Rangel kept getting elected.
We are in a bad place, our country has been sold out. City council a part time job at 90,000 a year? almost allof them attorneys who can keep their practice and make millions. Run for Congress? costs a lot of money, who can afford it? Mayor of NYC buys electiion with 100 million of his own money.
Your average legitimate person who is sincere has to chance in hell.
Alfredo
90? Try 112K/yr.
where are the heroes?
bust with their work-a-day lives, if they're lucky. I would love to run for office again, but I simply can't risk my lifestyle, modest as it is.
Nothing is going to change until the people get smart and demand real term limits in government. If two terms is good enough for the President of the US, it should be good enough for all politicians. These criminals stay in office forever and forget that they are supposed to represent us. Too much time in one position gives them time to wheel and deal and line their pockets with taxpayer money. Politicians need to be accountable to their constituents. As for the voters, when your representative isn't doing their job for you, vote them out. With term limits and voters casting their vote for the best person for the job and not for a party, we could have a good system. It's up to the voters. Please Remember in November and vote all the incumbents out. It's time for a fresh start. This is the only way the politicians will get the message.
Term limits have to be for both parties. The only people who call for it are the ones who are out of power at the time.
if i was a billionaire i'd offer a fat bounty to anyone who exposed a corrupt politician.
how do they go into office average citizens, earn average salaries yet come out millionaires set for life?
these thieves need stiffer penalties for stealing and abusing their power...life imprisonment, not a slap on the wrist. reporters need to have the balls to hold these creeps accountable
people need to have the balls to condemn a crooked politician when they are caught stealing, not defend the person because of party affiliation
too bad average folks couldn't band together and fund private investigators to shine some light on all the abuse, waste and corruption...the newspapers/reporters certainly aren't doing the job properly and are part of the problem, trading access for a blind eye. the tv commentators chuckle and laugh at the corruption, "ha ha, oh well that's just politics i guess" on to the story about the smoking baby
these political creeps are laughing at us as a whole. what fools we are...the partisans blaming each other's parties on blogs, pointing fingers when in reality they are all one big corrupt conglomeration of money grubbing deceit, out to line their pockets instead of representing us and improving our quality of life. we've allowed them to manipulate the system so it's too easy for them to steal. it's disgusting.
i don't care what party you belong to, if you've been in office for 20 years, calling the shots, voting for absurd policies that are bankrupting the city, state and country you are not getting my vote.
Vote for a Democratic machine candidate in Queens instead?
There as bad as Ragusa's Republican jerk-offs!
(LOL) yeah...like voting for Parkside's Tony "press conference" Avella) instead of Frank Padavan who's got a great track record of supporting his constituents and the neighborhoods that they live in!
Tony runs off at the mouth while Frank has delivered results!
The problem isn't "democracy" or "Democrats" or "Republicans" -- it's the over-sized role the government plays in our lives and especially in New York City with its huge dependency class of recipients of direct aid (what used to be called welfare) and all the city, state, and federal employees. Any form of government which regulates opening and operating private businesses as much as this city does is going to create many opportunities for corruption. People are moving out of New York, not because they don't like Democrats, but because they just don't want to pay for all those non-taxpayers and all those government employees. It isn't greed but more what's the point?
Voters just need to vote for the person who is capable of improving their neighborhoods and representing their constituents. Just vote for the best person for the job. The problem is people vote for parties and all of the political parties are corrupt. The same people keep running over and over again and that is why Queens is going down the tubes. We need new faces and new ideas.
"remember that a government big enough to give you everything you want is also big enough to take away every thing you have."
Arizona U.S. Senator,Barry Goldwater
the democrat dictatorship led by progressive/socialist obama and his unelected czars are well on their way to execute this crime.
unless all thinking citizens act quickly and vote the power away from them so that the damage can be repealed fast.
you may still be able to save our Federal Republic given to us by our forefathers and THE CONSTITUTION .
SOMEONE WHO IS NOT A LAWYER AND NOT INVOLVD IN POLITICS, TAKES A RUN FOR OFFICE, NOT KNOWING WHAT HE IS GETTING INTO, STANDS MY HIS OR HER MORALS, SHAKES UP THE ESTABLISHMENT BY STICKING TO HIS OR HER MORALS. HOLY SHIT HE SHE DOESN'T HAVE THE MONEY NEEDED TO RUN , NEVER MIND.
Alfredo
SOMEONE WHO IS NOT A LAWYER AND NOT INVOLVD IN POLITICS, TAKES A RUN FOR OFFICE, NOT KNOWING WHAT HE IS GETTING INTO, STANDS MY HIS OR HER MORALS, SHAKES UP THE ESTABLISHMENT BY STICKING TO HIS OR HER MORALS. HOLY SHIT HE SHE DOESN'T HAVE THE MONEY NEEDED TO RUN , NEVER MIND.
Alfredo
Padavan delivers? You can not be serious, he might have delivered in the past. Now he writes letters to Government agencies about "His constituents" and their concerns, he then sends "His constituent a letter with a copy of the letter he wrote about the letter you sent him. Every now and then a Commissioner sends a letter TWO YEARS LATER apologizing for not responding via letter, to "his" constituents in the papers. Padavan was a good man, but time has tainted.
Ah,
We don't live in a Democracy - We live in a Constitutional Republic, Thank God
A Democracy is where 51% of the people can vote to put the other 49% to death
"the democrat dictatorship led by progressive/socialist obama and his unelected czars are well on their way to execute this crime.
unless all thinking citizens act quickly and vote the power away from them so that the damage can be repealed fast.
you may still be able to save our Federal Republic given to us by our forefathers and THE CONSTITUTION ."?
-Rantings of a senile old fool.
BTW: You got the wrong "czar" -it was Richard Nixon who hatched the Huston Plan:
http://www.aarclibrary.org/publib/contents/church/contents_church_reports_vol2.htm
The machinations of Pols not enforcing illegal alien laws by embracing law breakers and providing money generated by and for citizen use is absolutely corrupt.
Democracy is two wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner. - B.F.
Post a Comment