I’m presently reading “The Price of Inequality” by Joseph Stiglitz which is a book aimed at explaining economic issues in a way that is understandable (to a large degree) by non-economists such as myself.  The book essentially reinforces much of the inferences I’ve made over the years since my disappointment that the American public was tricked into voting Ronald Reagan as president back in 1980.  I still remember the promise: “I’ll cut your taxes and balance the budget.”  Well, we all know Reagan not only didn’t balance the budget, but instead initiated policy that did exactly the opposite.  Of course, his supporters to this day will deny that reality and find a way to BLAME the ballooning deficits on Democratic congresses.  The “Reagan revolution” shows itself to be around the starting point of much of the FACTUAL data Stiglitz has put into this book focusing on the reality of America’s wealth “trickling up” (my words) due to “trickle down” economics.  What’s probably most frustrating about all this to me is the number of solid “middle class” Americans who still consider Reagan almost as a saint – and, STILL vote for republicans with little thought (or knowledge) of what they’re getting in return.

Of course, it doesn’t help to have a “liberal media” that is solely focused on (and owned by) the corporate interests that are gaining a stranglehold on America.  I’ve recently written about my frustration with Chris Matthews, the host of “Hardball” on MSNBC, supposedly “the place for politics.”  To me, in my attempt to find an antidote to the right wing corporate media I tend to end up on MSNBC on occasion.  (The actual place where I find information that doesn’t seem so tainted is on Free Speech TV, which I’m learning to turn to much more frequently)  Yesterday, I lasted only about 5 minutes on Matthews’ show before I had to turn it off in disgust.  As per usual, he started the show with an attempt to create another (non) crisis with President Obama – this time referring to “The White House” in his (not very) veiled attempt to (again) attack our sitting president.  I guess in today’s world it makes for good ratings.  This (non) crisis had to do with “anonymous” leaks coming from the Secret Service regarding allegations that some intern who was an advance person for the President’s visit to Central America brought a prostitute to his room and someone “in the White House” tried to cover it up.  Of course, this “story” won’t last long unless someone can turn it into another “Benghazi” fiasco.  The problem I have is that Matthews simply is falling in line with the Fox “news” crew who are attempting to find ways to criticize President Obama (evidently) in their sleep.

I don’t EVER hear about any of the successes of Obama’s administration (and, let me be clear here, I’m definitely one of the liberals who are not very happy with much of the direction his administration has taken – it’s just that I don’t want to get on the Fox, Matthews bandwagon – because it’s not all bad and it’s certainly BETTER than the alternative).  In fact, when you look at the economic situation today compared to what the republicans left Washington DC and America with back in 2009, things have gone directly upward.  (except for the deficit, which has gone in a downward direction – significantly)  I’m not going to claim that things are “great” because it should be obvious that they’re not – but, it would be nice to hear someone pointing out the reality of the difference.  We have an election coming up that is one of the most important in my lifetime and people like Matthews are FAILING to inform the American public about FACTS regarding accomplishments.  (like the economic comparison – because the republicans want to go back to the same policies that got us to the “crash” in 2008)

Or people like Matthews could be REMINDING people of the FACTS of what the republicans have done over the years.  I don’t remember anyone on a program such as “Hardball” showing graphs, for instance, that give a clear picture of what happens when republicans are “in charge” vs. democrats regarding, for example, the deficit – or job creation – or military spending – or investment in “green energy” – or commitment to education, and I could go on.  Most people I know have no idea of any of this – because they’re either too busy, too lazy, or too apathetic to find out.  Many of them rely on people like Matthews to keep them “informed.”  Everyone knows how Fox “news” does this (AKA GOP TV) which is what makes it so much more frustrating to me when people like Matthews are helping to “guide” America back to republican control of our Congress and more corporate domination of our nation.  The combination of a right wing Supreme Court, a right wing Congress, and a right wing “liberal media” could be the undoing of America as those of us who are called “baby boomers” knew it.  Reading books such as Stiglitz “The Price of Inequality” makes it real clear the significance of allowing these corporatists to continue usurping more and more POWER.

I’ve never heard more than a “peep,” for instance out of the so-called “liberal” media outlet MSNBC regarding “Citizens United” – the worst Supreme Court decision of my lifetime,  (followed closely by the “gutting” of the Voting Rights Act – which has allowed MULTIPLE Voter Suppression schemes of the republicans to become reality)  So, it’s no wonder to me that many of the “educated” adults I know have ZERO knowledge of what Citizens United, for example, is.  The younger college graduates I worked with before I retired from teaching didn’t grow up during the days of Martin Luther King Jr. and the Civil Rights movement.  For me, it’s a tragedy that the Voting Rights Act could be “gutted” with little to NO outrage from our “liberal media.”  These two issues and their ramifications SHOULD be a focus of people like Matthews, but he (and others) act as if “it’s no big deal” – while the wealthy in America continue to buy a government that will work for the interests of Wall Street at the expense of “Main Street.”  This has been going on since Reagan took office and it’s now reaching the scary point – because, it’s now becoming clear the sophisticated strategy that people like the now infamous Koch brothers have been implementing since (actually before) Reagan’s election is in danger of becoming a reality.

The statistics are undeniable – since 1980 the wealth at the “top” has grown exponentially and the wealth in the “middle” and “bottom” has stagnated at best.  In fact, the number of Americans who now fall in the bottom – taking measures of poverty into account – is continually INCREASING.  The Citizens United decision almost GUARANTEES this discrepancy in where America’s wealth is “headed” will continue.  As stated above, I refer to the republican economic plan as “trickle up” economics – and, I believe the FACTUAL statistics would support that contention.

So, why are people like Chris Matthews focused on finding the next (non) crisis at the “White House?”  I do remember that during the Clinton administration there was nary a day when the republican congress wasn’t focused more on finding a “scandal” than on solving problems that faced “we the people.”  So, I guess that’s what “floats the boat” of Matthews and his associates.  It must make for better ratings.  However, I believe elections matter and if the republicans succeed in taking back the Senate in November (which, at this point, seems likely) there will be many more besides myself who just completely tune out from our government.  And, I have to add, this is NOT healthy.  It is exactly what the republicans have been working for over these past 35+ years.  (the idea behind the voter suppression campaign is, obviously, having less people – especially liberals – voting)

I’ve laid out their strategy many times on this site – I’ll try to do it again briefly as I end this rant.  “Big business” hated the New Deal from its inception.  This all started (at least from my perspective) with the tax cuts for the top earners (like Reagan himself) which was the headline of the “Reagan revolution.”  At the same time (and, by the way, Reagan instituted MANY tax increases on the “middle class”) there was MASSIVE increases in defense spending (I’m sure you’re familiar with the amount of $’s “invested” by the “military industrial complex” in our politicians) and the process of deregulation began along with the “theory” of privatization.  Reagan famously said, “The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, ‘I’m from the government and I’m here to help.'”  Thus was born things like private military’s (ie Blackwater), private prisons (where the incentive is anything but rehabilitation), and all kinds of “private” attempts to “cut government down to the size where it can be drained in the bathtub.”  Right wing Talk radio became part of the strategy during Reagan’s term – using the “big lie theory” of Joseph Goebbels to generate their propaganda – that’s when Rush Limbaugh (and lessor others) was “thrust” upon an unsuspecting public – and, he’s still doing his damage to this day.  Reagan led the assault on unions – despite the FACT he was once the head of the Screen Actors Guild.  And, for my purposes in this post, finally, Reagan demonstrated that presidents and their associates could disregard the law and expect no ramifications from it (Iran/Contra) – and, we’ve been seeing the “fruit” from that “reality” ever since.

While Reagan was “doing his part,” people like the Koch’s were “growing” like a bad virus.  They’ve been working behind the scenes since before Reagan was elected, but were considered “fringe” wacko’s back then.  In fact, David Koch ran for Vice President as a “libertarian” the year Reagan first won the presidency.  You guessed it, Reagan was too LIBERAL for the Koch’s!  They (the Koch brothers) have been busy since those days funneling money into “local” elections around the nation to surreptitiously increase their impact on American politics while no one was looking (and secretly merging into the republican party).  I learned about the Kochs several years ago by listening to Thom Hartman on “liberal talk radio” – which has been pretty much removed from the airwaves – unless you’re willing to invest in satellite radio.  Other than with people like Hartman, for years they managed to be “invisible.”  They (the Kochs) are behind the Heritage Institute, the Cato Institute (both right wing “think tanks”), they’re the funding source for the Tea Party, and more importantly (in my mind) ALEC (The American Legislative Exchange Council) which is a right wing political force that has influenced untold “local” legislation in state after state where legislators seem to need “help” in making laws.  They’ve funded efforts to gerrymander legislative districts to minimize the effects of “progressive” voters (especially minority voters), and they have supported legislation which has made it possible to use tax havens (such as the Cayman Islands) to create unsavory operations to make even MORE money outside of U.S. borders.  If you want more, click here.

The Koch’s come from the John Birch Society (which accused President Eisenhower of being a “communist” and in today’s politics is the “Tea Party”) and have (and are willing to) invest untold amounts of their BILLIONS on buying our Congress and legislatures and governorships all across the nation.  The Birch Society has a history of antisemitism and White Supremacists.  They (the JBS members) were rejected as too extreme by ultra conservative William F Buckley.  Their 35+ year crusade to gain control of our society is dangerously close to success.

Unfortunately, by the time they’ve succeeded, people like Matthews will be finding someone else to blame for the resulting disaster besides themselves – as people with access to the American airwaves who are indirectly (or, for that matter, it could be directly – that’s one of the features of our “Citizens United” society – we don’t know) doing the Koch’s bidding.  I’ve stomached enough of Chris Matthews to understand that he “knows better” – that is, he fully well knows what the right wing republicans are up to – I have to believe that it just wouldn’t be “good theater” for him to take his focus off of nit-picking at our president in a time of WAR, and get his attention on the REAL agenda of the right wing republicans who answer to people like Charles and David Koch? (like, why wasn’t Matthews going “after” Obama when he chose to “pardon” GW Bush, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, and all the others for committing WAR CRIMES?)

The republican “dream” of a “permanent republican ‘majority'” consists of control of the Courts, the Congress, the White House, and the MEDIA.  With the help of people like Chris Matthews they will soon be one step from achieving their “dream.”  And, with the help of “Citizens United” it will be extremely difficult to “turn things around” should they succeed.  I’m guessing Chris Matthews next heresy will be promoting a republican presidential candidate in an attempt to create “good ratings.”  On the surface, the available GOP candidates are almost laughable.  The other day I heard Matthews essentially encouraging another run by Mitt Romney.  Despite the FACT Romney represents all that is wrong right now in America (137 Cayman Island tax cheating “havens” for starters) I’m sure Matthews is thinking Romney would make it more of a contest than – say – Ted Cruz.   The only way republicans could possibly get their “message” to resonate with the American public, is with the help of people like Matthews and our”liberal media.”

If you are interested in getting a good idea of where this is all headed, read Stiglitz book mentioned above, “The Price of Inequality.”  Economists like Stiglitz and Paul Krugman, believers in Keynesian economics, have been calling it RIGHT since I started paying closer attention to the internal destruction of my country (ie, circa Bush/Cheney) – while the people on the “right” – such as those who support “trickle up” economics and what Stiglitz calls the Washington consensus – people like Paul Ryan and others who idolize Milton Friedman (and Friedman’s so-called “free market” economics) continue to get it WRONG (unless your viewing things from the perspective of someone in the 1% who can’t get enough money).  The statistics don’t lie.  People like Matthews and the others in similar positions are all part of the 1% – I don’t know about you, but that causes me to wonder what motivates them to ignore present realities in order to appear “fair and balanced?”  Think about it before you vote!  Mitch McConnell and the Koch brothers were a large part of the force behind the push for “Citizens United.”  Should the republicans take total control of Congress in 2014 we’ll see even MORE evidence exposing the gravity of this disastrous Supreme Court ruling!