The Corruption of America - Who is to Blame

As far back as Aristotle in his writings on Generation and Corruption....Corruption in business and politics has existed and in most times flourished.
In his paper The Concept of Systemic Corruption in American History...Professor John Wallis details two types of corruption exist.
The first is ....Systemic Corruption....This is when Politics / Government corrupts Economics / Business.
The second is ....Venal Corruption....This is where Economics / Business corrupts Politics.
Corruption used in context means broken not illegal.
Systemic Corruption has been addressed and stressed through the ages.....setting up rules...conflict of interest codes...setting up laws and punishment directed at those in political power. To a degree these laws have been somewhat effective in keeping this kind of corruption in check at least in terms of becoming rampant.
Venal Corruption however- has for the most part been largely ignored-and been allowed to flourish in the fabric of "Free Enterprise". Here in the United States it has become a way of life. There are many examples that Corporate America has either bought or influenced the politics to further their goals and objectives even at the cost of the public health and well-being.
One recent case is the Health Care debate- Presidents Teddy Roosevelt- Harry Truman- John Kennedy-Lyndon Johnson- Richard Nixon- Bill Clinton and Barrack Obama all attempted to implement Universal Health Care and all failed. The premise of Universal Health Care is accepted in every other modern industrialized country in the world...it is a given ....it is a right...except in the United States. Whenever this plan is raised- Corporate America brings out all the propaganda tools at its disposal and floods the airwaves with such ludicrous and unfounded arguments like- "People in Canada have to wait for procedures for months" "You can't chose your own Doctor" “We already have the best Health Care in the world” Scare tactics and propaganda… All of these statements are false. The United States Health Care costs per capita are the highest in the world….#1 at 6700$ per capita and yet our overall quality of Health Care stands at #37 . I have traveled extensively around the world and have experienced firsthand other countries health care systems and all have been positive and no cost… I have made some great friendships from my travels and one thing my friends would all say is they would not trade their Health Care System for that which we find here in the US…..no way….Do they complain at times…yes they do …but when making a comparison to what we have …they are very content. Our paradigm cannot change until we realize there is a problem and that there are better ways to administer Health Care. Why can’t this paradigm shift…because when the subject is debated we face the power of the Economic Special Interests who stand to lose with a change- Insurance- Pharmaceutical-Medical Companies- What I would call the Health Care Industrial Complex. This is an example of what Wallis called Venal Corruption. Politics / Politicians are “Bought”- Government is corrupted in its mission to provide for the common good and its health and well-being.
What is happening now on both sides of the political spectrum is directly tied to the notion of Venal Corruption and its effects on job loss- disparity of wealth distribution and the overall economy. Both sides are frustrated and feel like they can’t take it anymore. I find it interesting that the Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street have some basic premises they share in common. They both believe the System is broken and needs to be fixed and both have distrust and resentment to the financial industry.
I don’t want to be misunderstood- so I must qualify a point.
Charles Reich wrote in his visionary book “The Greening of America” in 1970-“What has happened is not about one person, it is much more, it has become a way of life” There is no one person, organization, politician, company or governmental body to point the finger at- it has become the American Way of both doing business and governing. So – it would also hold true that not one individual or entity can change it for the better. Reich also wrote in somewhat prophetic way in 1970- “ The United States is in the midst of an all-consuming spiritual and political crisis, for which the only cure is a new kind of revolution, "a revolution by consciousness." War and poverty, uncontrolled technology and the destruction of the environment, the Corporate State and bureaucracy, the artificiality of work and culture, the absence of community--all are conspiring to produce the most "devastating" impoverishment of all, the "loss of self, or death in life." Does this sound familiar?

What is happening now is a revolution by consciousness.It is an awakening.
It is not one person or organizations fault- the fault is with the “System”- it wasn’t Goldman Sachs- Fannie Mae- Investors- the President or Congress- in looking at it from a root cause analysis standpoint – it is the system- the System is at fault. There are so many pieces and moving parts to the system and the existing paradigm. So- as one looks at the system- we need to analyze the processes and make the necessary changes that truly affect the System and its ability to provide desired results -one at a time. There will be more questions in the beginning and not many answers. The revolution by consciousness will take time.
A larger and more important discussion on a philosophical level must take place first and that is “What do we want from Government” What is Government’s role in our lives…in the world…in commerce..?” Once we have a clear understanding of the role of Government is and its goals ….it will be clearer then for one to analyze the processes that directly influences and changes the System for the better.
The economic crash- loss of liberties- lack of jobs and wealth disparity are symptoms not causes and we need to insure we look to the root cause of each and approach finding solutions in a methodical process- understanding the impacts of those decisions. For every action there is a co-equal reaction.We need to be deliberate and dedicated.
As an example of just one issue….
One piece to the puzzle is the inability of the House of Representatives to function in the best interest of our country- it is broken and has been broken. It was not functioning properly under the Democrats as it is not functioning now under the Republicans. What is the root cause? Politics? Special Interests? Far left? Far right? Maybe a combination of all?
I looked to the founding fathers and their intent behind the Constitution in its establishing the House of Representatives- Citizen Representatives – designed to represent the interests of ordinary people in their districts. In the beginning House members were only paid a per Diem for expenses- no offices in Washington DC- no staffs- they were farmers and common people who came to Washington once a year- during February -when there were no crops to be tended – made law and went home. They were not professionals – they were common citizens. I firmly believe the founding fathers never intended the House of Representatives become a body of professional politicians. The members of the house are elected to 2 year terms which puts them in a position of “Always Running for Re-Election” The "Political Windsock" becomes the guiding light in the decision making process. In addition- there are no term limits which further inhibits their ability to govern for the people and by the people. After a few terms of being in the DC Bubble they lose touch with their constituency and fall prey to the special interests and Party Politics and become impotent to making decisions that are in the best interest of their District.The longer they stay in the bubble the less effective they become in relation to their constituents needs and the needs of our country as a whole.
So- that is a flaw in the System- How do we fix the process such that our representatives act in our best interest and not special interests? Enact term limits for members’ of the house to 3 terms and expand the term to 4 years. The rationale to increasing the term length is to allow members to not be always running for re-election- allow them time to govern without political pressure. The public’s memory is short. Give members time to govern effectively without the political wind sock pressure but limit the number of terms so they do not get so entrenched in the System that they lose touch as to why they are there- To Serve and not to be Served.
There are many ...many more issues to be discussed and solutions found in order that we may fix the system and do away with the corrupting factors that stand in our way of success- Norman Vincent Peale described it as the "Process on De-confusion"- take a large problem and break it down to its smallest piece....analyze it and act to solve...eventually the system will work for all....because We are the system and WE can change it. I do hope the process is done with class and integrity with the good of all in mind.