When buying and selling are controlled by legislation,
the first thing to be bought and sold are legislators.
P. J. O'Rourke
How many voters give more than $1,000 to political candidates,
and what proportion of the population and contributions do they represent?
When plunder becomes a way of life for a group of men living in society,
they create for themselves, in the course of time,
a legal system that authorizes it and a moral code that glorifies it.
Frederic Bastiat
Do some politicians pacify the electorate with platitudes
while promising the status quo to those enjoying legislated benefits?
The first truth is that the liberty of a democracy is not safe
if the people tolerate the growth of private power
to a point where it becomes stronger than their democratic state itself
That, in essence, is fascism
ownership of government by an individual
by a group or by any other controlling power
Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Has the government penalized well run businesses
by rewarding some poorly managed connected firms with taxpayer money?
A government which robs Peter to pay Paul,
can always depend on the support of Paul.
George Bernard Shaw
If power can corrupt a few, can apathy devastate many?
If the National Football League’s revenue
comes from television contracts, licensed paraphernalia, and ticket sales
and divided up between the teams in two conferences
and special interest and corporate contributions
are relatively divided up between two political parties
depending on who currently holds more power
do most fans and constituents tend to cheer for their team
even though the financial foundations of both systems
enrich both sides of the same businesses
who exclude all and/or most of the nonaffiliated from participation?
What should the electorate expect
from leadership dependent on the status quo?
Can the wants of a few who know
outweigh the needs of many that don’t until a majority figures it out?
If a few contribute the majority of large campaign donations that many can’t afford
who works for whom
and what do the few expect in return that most probably won’t receive?
Can special interest groups manipulate consumer behavior
by influencing government with campaign contributions?
Has corruption of the political, capitalist and information systems
negatively influenced economic performance and consumer behavior
through legislation, budget appropriation, regulation and taxation
to benefit a few at the expense of many?
When can we collectively admit that our system is broken?
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