The Levy
Analogy: My Story
Seeing the power of Big $$$
By Richard S. Galloway, WeDontHaveFreeSpeech@outlook.com
Imagine Congress surrounded by a levy – a very high, impenetrable wall made of money – with those who provide that money on the “protected” inside and all the rest of us on the outside floundering in the flood. Since the beginning of the Great Recession, we’ve lost our homes, our jobs, our benefits, our retirement funds, our marriages … If you need a reminder, see the movie “The Big Short.”
Then ask yourself: When
it comes time for Congress to do the government's work…the people's work...to create the laws which
are supposed to serve and protect the public, who has access and their ear? You
know who; and you can’t un-know what you know. If
the way Big Money corrupts our political world doesn’t make you furious, why for heaven’s sake not?
My Personal Story: Seeing the corrupting
influence of Big $$$ in our politics.
My first personal experience to see Big $$$ actually working
with my own eyes was over thirty-five years ago. The issue has been up close
and personal ever since. I can tell you for sure, the more I have looked,…the
more public issues I’ve worked on, the more clearly I have come to see there
are very few exceptions anywhere. This is how it works.
I was with a group of about twenty
ordinary citizens who had come to Washington at our own expense to plead for
our Congressman’s support of a critical issue very
much in the public interest..
So as the Constitution guarantees, being good citizens we “assembled peacefully” in Washington to “petition our Representative to redress of our grievances.” We had called well in advance making an appointment and were promised at least fifteen minutes to present our case.
We sat in his foyer for several hours past our appointed time as one after another well-healed lobbyists came in and whispered in the receptionist's ear. They were immediately ushered into our Congressman's office and remained for long periods of time. Their laughter through the door made it sound like they were having a drunken party in there. When we were finally "allowed" in, our Congressman apologized that he was “so busy” that he could only give us five minutes to present our very complex issue – two of which he spent on the phone assuring what was clearly a business interest that they had his total support.
We ended up with about two minutes to tell him why we were there. At that point he abruptly interrupted our presenter in the middle of a sentence, and rose to usher us out while offering his platitude that he would “look into it.” Okay, that was credible.
So as the Constitution guarantees, being good citizens we “assembled peacefully” in Washington to “petition our Representative to redress of our grievances.” We had called well in advance making an appointment and were promised at least fifteen minutes to present our case.
We sat in his foyer for several hours past our appointed time as one after another well-healed lobbyists came in and whispered in the receptionist's ear. They were immediately ushered into our Congressman's office and remained for long periods of time. Their laughter through the door made it sound like they were having a drunken party in there. When we were finally "allowed" in, our Congressman apologized that he was “so busy” that he could only give us five minutes to present our very complex issue – two of which he spent on the phone assuring what was clearly a business interest that they had his total support.
We ended up with about two minutes to tell him why we were there. At that point he abruptly interrupted our presenter in the middle of a sentence, and rose to usher us out while offering his platitude that he would “look into it.” Okay, that was credible.
I have no doubt: That’s how it works
enough of the time to insure that private interests overwhelm the public good.
Their levy of Big $$$ protects their own interests from “We the people”
barricaded on the outside – unseen and
unheard. That’s how it works. Bottom line: “We Don’t
Have Free Speech. We Can’t Afford It.”
Will you help start this
effort by signing our petition?
Thank you.
Annotated Table of Contents
http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/sign-the-pledge-big-out?source=c.em&r_by=14960502
Insist candidates vote for a single act of Congress
stating: “There is no relationship between speech and money stated or implied
in the US Constitution and therefore no such relationship exists” as the basis
of further reforms to limit the abuses of Big Money interests.
Best summary of the proposed “Recover our Democracy Act;”
its Constitutional basis; removing purported legal objections, public financing
of elections, limits on campaign contributions, public funding of federal
elections, preprogrammed campaign website, redefining a bribe and much more
Cut and paste text to share by electronic media to spread
the word on our plan
Our appointment being ignored while lobbyists immediately enter
our Congressman’s office
Being on the outside: Explaining the meaning of our logo…the
corrupting influence of Big Money
Political contributions, Citizens United Supreme Court
Decision, “We don’t
have free speech. We can’t afford it,” our
solution is an act of Congress,
“Backdoor money in politics, quid pro quo, “anything of material value
offered or given to, or received and accepted by any candidate, incumbent or
governmental employee under any circumstance shall be defined as a bribe,” penalties defined for candidates and government
employees.
Our early commentaries: Free speech is fundamental to
democracy, different views, uses and limitations of free speech, public
financing of elections, fair and balanced media coverage
Original free speech: freedom to speak our mind, power
to “buy” both the “content” and the “delivery” of “free” speech, "personhood" of corporations,
Supreme Court and Citizens United,
ownership of the media, points of view, political advertising, educational content,
bought speech,…
Trickle down economics, tax reductions, income disparity,
deregulation, power by changing belief systems, abuses, distortions and lies, is
it regulation or just bad regulation?, affording governmental programs and high
taxes, millennia of struggle by the rich to retain control vs. democracy,
85% of Democrats, 81% of Independents, and 76% of Republicans opposed
Citizens United
Humans speaking their mind
without fear, means of extending the reach of speech [meida], bought speech,
literally “free” speech decoupled from money, power of the media, corporate personhood,
limitations of free speech, campaigns and political speech, alternative communications
for elections: public financing, freedom of the Internet….
Figures on campaign
contributions given by largest lobbying corporations [6+ years old = pre Supepr
PACs]
One of our earliest posts:We don't have free speech
that has meaningful access to our own representatives. Our logo, our slogan, our chants, young adults, spreading
the word on the Internet, Obama’s election, making videos,
Largely unedited, free associated ideas on framing the legislation
Free public website designed
and formatted to conduct campaigns for office and public issues , FEC provided
bank account, and credit cards , campaign accounting system and
regulations, partial design specifications, real time public review access…
…the most logical
public space to allow the free flow of information on issues of public interest
“understanding the
power of corporations as a means of amassing power and money, the founding
fathers originally rejected the existence of corporations,” corporations
are not mentioned in the Constitution and have no protected rights; therefore,
Congress may limit or abolish corporations as deemed necessary for the public
good. Growth of corporate power, personhood of corporations and personal rights
attributed to corporations , theory of 14th amendment [due process]
applies to corporations,
