Why I stand with the 99%

If there is one thing that both the Tea Party and the 99% can agree on is that there is an unjust coupling of wealth and political power in this nation. It seems that the Tea Party wants to eliminate this problem by minimizing government while the 99% wants to eliminate the wealth disparity. (I am skirting around the fact that there is a good amount of diversity in both groups.)

However, the Tea Party has set themselves up as cheerleaders for what the rich and powerful want. They want less regulation, less of a government safety net, fewer government programs. I suspect that much of this comes from sheer magnitude of the injustice of the bank rescue. The rich got bailed out while the rest of us got screwed. Sadly, their solutions sound like the same things that corporations want. Less regulation for the banks is exactly what the corporations and the Tea Party both want. It is the same thing with environmental regulations. It is the same thing with the social safety net. One is left to wonder (I suspect the Koch brothers would have an explanation.)

So then the question must obviously be why we should support the 99%. Let me start by saying that at a very fundamental level, I agree with them. For the first time in this nation's history we have a generation that is going to be poorer, less healthy , and weaker nation than the previous generation inherited. Basics like Social Security and Medicaid are going to be denied to younger people (after having paid them for the older generation).

Furthermore, when I look at nations that do many of the things I want, like increased regulation, better economic safety nets, less wealth inequality, I find that they work well. In terms of per capita income, we aren't at the top by any measure. (Pardon my link to Wikipedia, but it was the only page with convenient listings that I could find.) Nations with much stronger social safety nets than ours are doing it better. Meanwhile, amongst OECD nations, we are at the bottom 5 for social justice as we are for wealth distribution, and we are one of the most polluting countries in the world.

This is compounded by the fact that starting in the 1980s, income stagnated for all but the richest of us. Once we started eliminating government, the rich just started getting richer while everyone else was working harder for more. Even after the collapse in 2008, they kept getting richer. CEO pay is now 343 times what the average worker makes, and that doesn't take capital earnings (which are taxed at a lower rate) into account.

One example of the abuse by those in power is in health care. To be sure, if you can afford it, you can get top of the line health care in this nation. Even those of us with "adequate" insurance can get some pretty decent health care too. That said, our system is monstrous. It is unimaginable that we, as a civilized nation, will turn to our poorest, least able, and sickest, and just say "fuck you, suffer." Yet that is what we do. Even if you are not sick, but have a pre-existing condition, or don’t do the paper work exactly, good luck getting covered.

That is, of course, small picture. The big picture is whether or not we, as a nation, get our money's worth, and the answer is clearly that we do not. In fact, we spend more than any other nation on health care, and we aren't living the longest, we have people passing away from treatable illnesses, and it is so unjust as to be unconscionable.

In short, our system sucks. That said, Medicare does work. Right now, young people are paying for the current recipients. It is the same thing with Social Security. These are wonderful programs and probably the only social programs that are popular with the American people. That said, I doubt that I will ever see the benefits of either program, so why should I pay for it? It isn't fair that I am paying for a program that I will never see the benefits from. Of course, if people still working stop paying into that system - then everyone will stop getting your benefits. 

Of course, every other industrialized nation has solved this by providing universal coverage. While no country has solved it perfectly, almost every country has done a better job than us. (See my link above) Are we incapable as a nation of providing at least basic health care to everyone? I would answer that we are, but it isn't inherent. The problem is that there are very wealthy and powerful interests getting in the way.

That seems wrong to me. People say it will cost us more in taxes. Right now, my insurance is about $350, which I get through my wife’s job. We are paying $700 a month between the two of us. I would happily pay $500 a month for both of us to get better health care. It doesn’t matter to me if it is taxes or a private company – I am still out the money. Ultimately, I would rather pay less for better product. 

Keep in mind, the reason corporations opposed the public option was because they would not be able to compete.

My friend Cathy making a stand

Enough is enough. I want to live in a country that offers real economic opportunity- one that is compassionate enough to offer people health care and a social safety net. Will some abuse it? Of course. But does that mean that nobody should have one? How many people do you know who are stuck in jobs they hate? In many other countries, that doesn't happen because losing your job is not the end of the world. I want to live in a country where breaking your arm doesn't mean that you are going to be impoverished. I don't want to live a country where you have to take some crappy job because you desperately need to pay those bills. I want to live in a country with compassion, kindness, decency.

In other words, it is time to remove money from politics and regulate corporations. If they really are people, let them live by the same rules as the rest of us. If someone dies because of a corporation’s action, put it in jail. Better yet, put it on death row in Texas. I also want personal freedoms. I feel that the nations that do this best are in those in Scandinavia. I don't want to move there, but I think we could learn from some of their ideas. We are a nation of immigrants, and I think that we have always done well by importing good ideas.

By the way, Scandinavia is not part of the Euro-zone, so they are removed from what is happening in Greece (keep in mind that the Euro is pretty much a conservative idea), and Iceland has recovered nicely, and much more quickly, by following a socialized regiment.

Moreover, government is ours. By every right, we should have an equal say in government. My views, your views, David Koch's views and Michael Moore's views should all be held in equal regard. Money should not be the keys to the kingdom. So, let's get money out of politics, stop saying that corporations are people, and find realistic ways of solving the problems. I think that puts me with those people who are occupying Wall Street. Indeed, it puts 99% of us with them.