What Price Fairness?

© - Tom Hyland - 03-24-09


I just finished watching a re-run of last night’s Charlie Rose Show. All the experts and pundits with both their Naysayer and Soothsayer opinions about the A.I.G. Fiasco - the new and improved Bank Bail-Out of Toxic mortgage holdings - the parries and thrusts - the pros and cons - the what if scenarios …

Is it possible that it is all BULL-CRAP?

The American Public finally - Woke up - Spoke out - Raised Hell.

Yesterday, I was on the radio again - NPR’s local Baltimore show, Midday, with host Dan Roderick and his guest, a Professor from The University of Baltimore - yet another Pundit. After stating that I happened to be an alumnus of said institution, I posed my two-pronged comment:

1. The description and definition of the legal entity, the CORPORATION, needs to be totally RE-DEFINED!
Enough is enough!

2. CAPITALISM NEEDS CAPS! Specific limitations of exorbitant profits must be established. Based on some sensible multiple of a corporation’s assets, any amount garnered OVER said profit limit should be then split 50-50 - half retained by the corporation, and the other half put into the U.S. Taxpayer’s Treasury! Let us use Exxon as an example - if the Net Profit After Taxes is 300 Billion Dollars, and the assets are 100 Billion - and the ratio determined is 2 to 1 - then only 200 Billion is legally retained by the entity - the other 100 Billion gets split - 50 Billion retained, and 50 Billion into the U.S. Treasury, to help keep the Ship Afloat!

As I hung up my cell phone to hear their comments via the radio, I was dismissed like a HOT POTATO! A quick two or three sentence comment, to the effect that the government could not IMPEDE the entrepreneurism of Capitalism - blah, blah … BLAH!

They went right back to their discussion of how the corporations must be allowed to police their own ETHICS!

SURE! Just like Congress Polices its OWN … NOT!

The foxes are in charge of guarding the henhouse - and the hens are getting eaten up by the billions! Do I sound like Henny Penny?

The Sky is falling - the SKY IS FALLING!

Justice and Fair Play - are these just dinosaurs from the past?

Let us examine just a few FACTS:

1. Congress sets their Own salaries = GREED.

2. Congress gives themselves Raises, while telling us to tighten our belts = GREED.

3. Congress created their own, self-serving, special, exclusive, Retirement Plan - they are not with us in the same boat, Social Security - they are not even in the boat with all other Federal employees and the Military, the Civil Service System = GREED.

4. Congress receives individual ‘donations’ and ‘contributions’ and ‘Lobbying Incentives’ = GRAFT = GREED.

5. Congress MAKES the law, then BREAKS the Law, slaps those who are caught with their hands in the ‘cookie jar’ on the knuckles, and ‘polices’ their own, and merely says: “Now, now, Children, you mustn’t do that - it’s a No-No!” So that when the roles are later reversed between ‘Parent and Child’ they then can say: “Now don’t forget how LENIENT I was with you, Dear!” GREED.

6. Congress enjoys many, many other benefits, like: Free trips on expensive airplanes, and yachts - Free postage - Free transportation to and fro that thing we all call ‘work’ - which they only do for PARTIAL times during the year - NOT 2,080 hours like most Middle Income Americans actually do - Free Boston Bean Soup - Free Lunches - Free Dinners - Free Suppers - Free Snacks - Free Healthcare - Free Security Protection as needed - Free Hand-outs - FREE - FREE - FREE - Free as Birds, lolling up in the treetops, basking in the warm sun - while We the People merrily ROW THE BOAT, singing: “Merrily we Row along, Row along, Row along - Merrily we Row along - because we’re just Stupid Sheep!” GREED.

7. Congress somehow manages to REGULATE US - the little guys - while DE-REGULATING all the GREEDY Corporations, Companies, Utilities, Manufacturers, CEO’s, Bank Presidents, Mortgage Investors, Wall Street Speculators, and other RICH people. GREED.

8. EARMARKS - Even though the President dictated to Congress even before his inauguration that there would no longer be any, how did congress respond? Only about 8,000 Earmarks stuck into the package! Not a mere 100, or 800 - but Ten Times 800! Most SNUCK in at the Eleventh Hour, and all in a 1,100-page document that NOBODY BOTHERED TO READ! I would personally consider that as a SLAP in the Face, especially from his own Party members! GREED.

9. COMMON SENSE - There is none in Congress! How corrupt they are as a total body is so evident that they act as if they are individually and collectively ABOVE THE LAW! POMPOUS GREED.

10. Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall. Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
All the king’s horses and all the king’s men, could not put Humpty Dumpty back together again!

The election of a new President who promised CHANGE is only the First step. He can not change the corrupt system alone! He needs US to rant and rave, bitch and moan, blog and complain - about each and every Wrong-doing that has both already occurred, as well as those that will occur in the future.

It is up to US TO DEMAND FAIRNESS - the proverbial pendulum has finally swung to the opposite extreme - the RICH and CROOKS are DONE!

What price fairness? A NEW BROOM SWEEPS CLEAN!

Remember that every time you step into an election voting booth!

“A Nation OF the People, BY the People, FOR the People!”


God Bless America!


© - TKH