BAD MONEY
Big money in politics is wrong. Wrong
whether it comes from billionaires,
corporations, labor unions or any other
form of special interest.
The so called Super PAC's have
revealed who their backers are
and this renewed my fervor.
Regardless, it is a kind of buying of favors.
We will not see a significant improvement
in the quality of governance in the U.S.
until we take big money out of
electoral politics.
Too much time and effort is spent on raising
money and with the money comes expectations.
The big dollar game of politics today
makes the comment from the old
cynic and iconoclast H.L. Mencken
all the more true.
"Every election is a sort of advance auction
sale of stolen goods."
FACES OF THE DECISION TREE
Big money in politics is wrong. Wrong
whether it comes from billionaires,
corporations, labor unions or any other
form of special interest.
The so called Super PAC's have
revealed who their backers are
and this renewed my fervor.
Regardless, it is a kind of buying of favors.
We will not see a significant improvement
in the quality of governance in the U.S.
until we take big money out of
electoral politics.
Too much time and effort is spent on raising
money and with the money comes expectations.
The big dollar game of politics today
makes the comment from the old
cynic and iconoclast H.L. Mencken
all the more true.
"Every election is a sort of advance auction
sale of stolen goods."
FACES OF THE DECISION TREE
Over the mountain, in the Paso Robles wine region
a tree stands as a reminder of the day we decided to move
to California. We call it the "Decision Tree."
factors that would be engaged in such a decision. Moving
across the country to an area where we knew no one, selling and buying a home, leaving friends and family and starting over combined to create multiple questions and all of them lead to the big one-should we do it?
and knew it was time for a resolution. We packed a picnic
lunch, drove to see Marc and Maggie, who we had been
introduced to by a mutual friend. We visited their winery
and drove to a spot along a vineyard, stopped, picnicked under an old tree as we looked over wine country. Lana and I love old trees and we reasoned this would be a good a place to decide as any.
a few months ago as we were chatting with Marc and Maggie, who have become friends, we learned that as they debated
weather or not to leave Southern California and buy land to
create winery, they did the same thing- picnicked under the same tree, what they told us they call their decision tree.
See you down the trail.
Nice story.
ReplyDeleteThe decision on Super PACs recently handed down by the Supreme Court was one of the worst decisions ever. I wish I could take credit for the following statement but I can't: "I'll believe corporations are people when the state of Texas executes one."
ReplyDeleteI'm ready to begin the process of a constitutional amendment to overturn this last SC decision.
I agree. " $30 million by Romney's Super Pac. " L.A. Times 2/1/12 "$74 Million for Obama Campaign" L.A. Times l/31/12. Here's a good quote. "The mere proposal to set the politician to watch the capitalist has been disturbed by the rather disconcerting discovery that they are both the same man. We are past the point where being a capitalist is the only way of becoming a politician, and we are dangerously near the point where being a politician is much the quickest way of becoming a capitalist." G.K Chesterton, from Peter Schweizer's book "Throw Them All out." Amen!
ReplyDeleteBruce-thank you.
ReplyDeleteStephen-couldn't agree more. Let me know when you start the petition.
Dagny-Good info and I love the Chesteton quote. thanks.
Put me down alongside Stephen and Dagney - Washington is the home of Crony Capitalism and the WH is an openly avid participant in it. Term limits would go a long way in thwarting the current cults of power inside the elitist beltway of shame.
ReplyDelete"I am certainly not impressed with Washington's ability to be completely intolerable and too extreme to bear." -- Exactly where down the trail will you be? - Moto