It's Official - We're an Oligarchy

No surprise ....



A new study from Princeton spells bad news for American democracy—namely, that it no longer exists.

Asking "[w]ho really rules?" researchers Martin Gilens and Benjamin I. Page argue that over the past few decades America's political system has slowly transformed from a democracy into an oligarchy, where wealthy elites wield most power.

Using data drawn from over 1,800 different policy initiatives from 1981 to 2002, the two conclude that rich, well-connected individuals on the political scene now steer the direction of the country, regardless of or even against the will of the majority of voters.

"The central point that emerges from our research is that economic elites and organized groups representing business interests have substantial independent impacts on U.S. government policy," they write, "while mass-based interest groups and average citizens have little or no independent influence."

As one illustration, Gilens and Page compare the political preferences of Americans at the 50th income percentile to preferences of Americans at the 90th percentile as well as major lobbying or business groups. They find that the government—whether Republican or Democratic—more often follows the preferences of the latter group rather than the first.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/princeton-experts-say-us-no-longer-democracy

The suckers are buying it!

In a report from AllGov.com, we learn that for the first time more than half of all members of Congress are millionaires. But what’s really interesting about the story is that it tells us there are more Democrats than Republicans in Congress who are millionaires.

That is not surprising to some of us, but it might be to a lot of people who have bought the Democrat/lamestream media narrative that Republicans are “the party of the rich.”

Let me tell you why this really is.

First, let’s understand there is nothing wrong with being a millionaire, or a billionaire for that matter. Contrary to what the rhetoric of the Democratic Party suggests, the vast majority of rich people have earned their fortunes by working hard and accomplishing things that have benefited others. That includes those who have made their money by investing, because they have put their capital at risk to help finance businesses that create jobs and produce goods and services people want and need.

Having said that, how can it be that there are more Democrat millionaires than Republican millionaires when everyone knows the conventional wisdom that Democrats are the party of the working man and Republicans are the party of the rich?

Because that’s a load of crap, that’s how.

There are a lot of different ways to make a living, and I’ve got no problem with any of them as long as they’re legal, but let’s look at what they are. One way is to put your capital at risk starting and operating a business. Some people who do this become millionaires, but the vast majority do not. I’m generalizing, but I think it’s fair to say this is the path more often taken by Republicans, who believe in pursuing opportunities in the free market. Others pursue careers as business executives within larger companies – and yes, you can make good enough money to become a millionaire but most who take this path fall well short of that even though many of them do quite well.

People who pursue business careers and later decide to run for Congress often do so because they see what a big problem the meddling of government is for the business community. And as you might expect, they run as Republicans.

Now, as for the Democrats, consider this: Barack Obama, who held jobs like “community organizer” and constitutional law professor – and yes, I recognize the irony there – is a millionaire. How is that? I’ll tell you how. A career in politics can make you pretty good money. You can publish and sell a lot of books. You can bank your salary because a lot of your living expenses can be manipulated to qualify as expenses that political fundraising can pay for. You can also make pretty good money in the political world as a lawyer, or as a lobbyist, or as a consultant.

Democrats would have you believe the Republican world is just bursting with dollars, and everyone sits around the country club and the board room sipping champagne and eating caviar. The truth is, the Democrats’ world is the world of politics and government, and there is lots of money flowing in that world – more than enough for plenty of people who know how to play the game to become millionaires.

Keep that in mind the next time Democrats freak out at Republican attempts to limit the size of government. Their real problem is that Republicans want to limit the scope and influence of the political world, and that’s where so many of them have become millionaires.

Both parties love millionaires, and both parties are full of millionaires. The difference is that one party publicly demonizes millionaires who make their money in the private sector, even as it continues to grow the political/governmental world in which even more of them are striking it rich.

Yep joaini is right