Franklin's Focus 7/7/10

A Dutch Radical Speaks His Piece and I Agree

For many years now a Dutch radical has been sending me his thoughts on
sundry subjects. I'm sending you his thought for today. His control of
English is not perfect, and it sometimes produces odd sentences and
unusual word usage. I just ignore these oddities and focus on the core
of his messages. Take the first sentence of the appended selection.
The 'is' is a brief form of 'should be' that pops up often in his
writings.

He is an interesting guy who often has unusual slants in his essays.
He has gotten me thinking more than once. The notion of a mass capping
of all incomes in a democracy is actually highly compatible with basic
democratic philosophy. We just never hear it said. The fact that one
man in Amerika owns a personal wealth that exceeds that of the
combined wealth of over 50% of the American people is clearly
incompatible with the vision of democracy that the Enlightenment
theorists had in mind. Their bones must be rattling in their graves
over this stunning obscenity.

The simple truth is that money equals power. If you own more personal
wealth than the total wealth of half the people of this nation, you
possess enormous power. A democracy simply cannot function with such
vast disparities in power among the people. It is bound to become a de
facto plutocracy.

The problem historically has been that only a political theory of
democracy has been touted, while no democratic economic theory has
been developed except by a handful of thinkers starting with Karl
Marx, who has been relegated by the capitalist media to the status of
some kind of evil mad man rather than the stupendous genius he clearly
was. Ask any person claiming to be a believer in democracy what his or
her democratic economic theory is, and he or she will look at you like
you're insane. Try it, and see for yourself.

Do you recall the title given to O.J. Simpson's team of attorneys? The
media called it the "dream team". No killer has ever been more guilty.
He also was extremely wealthy and could afford a dream team. And so it
goes. Money = power. His exoneration was a product of a plutocratic
society.

It was proved not long ago that over half the death penalty 28
prisoners in Illinois were innocent. Actually, the number of innocents
was probably even greater. That is an example of what happens when a
so called democracy does not democratize wealth and power. A true
democracy must have a democratic political foundation and a democratic
economic foundation. This was once understood way back during the
flowering of the Enlightenment. It was a bright light in the darkness
that flickered far too briefly.

I catch hell when I argue that this country does not have a democracy
as conceived of by the theorists of the Enlightenment. I often merely
say Amerika is not a democracy.

A word of advice: this is a good way to become an isolated hermit.

Warmest regards,
Richard

===================================================
7/7/10

The masses spending 200,000 euro in one year is the limit !

Exclusive and prestigious malls, 5- star hotels, banks, government
buildings, the stock exchange. These institutions were attacked and
burned down in Bangkok after the bloody suppression of a demonstration
that had lasted for many weeks.
The People know that greed of the Happy Few causes the wretched life
of the majority.
They understand they will remain an inferior majority when they do not
resort to surprising, powerful and autonomous actions.

Most mass actions are however controlled and guided by people from the
establishment. Voronai Vanijaka wrote rightly in the Bangkok Post of
April the 11th 2010 that “in the present struggles the new elites are
making pawns of the poor and the old elites are making pawns of the
middle class….”

Many people still expect that politicians and industrial bosses will
bring improvement but others have lost any confidence in the good
intentions of high-placed persons. They realise that the establishment
will never give all people the same status (at the cost of the status
of the top of society). “……. change will never start in politics, in
governments or in the circles of the old or new establishments. Change
has to start in the huts, the homes and the condos of the people of
Thailand …… the power of the People is a force to be reckoned with.”

I was in Bangkok and visited several times the demonstrations. I saw
people full of hope that a better future was about to come. But then
the army used excessive violence against these friendly and peaceful
demonstrators. More than hundred masspeople died and many more were
seriously wounded.
In the days after the onslaught the elite lost control over the
masses. Then the masses proved they understood that money controlled
by the greedy is the real cause of much misery. They attacked the
symbols and the playground of the Happy Few.
The top is driven by money – in the first place for their own pocket.
When they cannot spend their money because their exclusive gadgets are
not made anymore and the exclusive elitist places that are closed for
common citizens do not exist anymore the world will change.
But that will only occur when the idea that all people should have the
same status will replace money as the driving force to propel humanity
into a new era.

And the first step in that direction can be summarised by one sentence:
To spend 200,000 euro in one year should be the limit for anyone!

Joost van Steenis: downwithelite@gmail.com

End