By Lyman Baier / Chronicle contributor
This is not a time to be a member of the so-called silent majority. Our prevailing economic system has concentrated almost unlimited power in the hands of a few. Believe it when you hear the words "money is power." Money actually gives power over life and destiny. With the high degree of specialization necessitated by mass production, as workers we no longer produce our own food or make our own clothing. Each of us must buy the necessary goods and services. And this requires money.
Except for the skilled trades, we do not own our own tools, and we must seek employment in factories, banks, and corporations. And because of this our livelihood is dependent upon a job over which we exercise feeble control.
Surprisingly, thousands of young men and women went to outstanding colleges and universities to earn a degree in business administration. Yet the response to a financial shortfall remains: the laying off of the wrong end of the spectrum, those most able to contribute to a successful society. Management supervises the production of everything from the Big Mac to the SUV. What happened to the new skills gained by an MBA? Young people may soon ask whether the debt incurred in getting an education is worth the risk.
9/11 caught our leaders by surprise, and in an act of atonement to soothe their guilt, they released billions of dollars from the Treasury, mainly to fight an unprovoked war. We were not asked whether this was a good thing. All that public (and often wasteful) spending was called "compassionate conservatism." The public well was opened. We are on a downhill slide. Bucket after bucket is being filled from the Treasury and disappearing God knows where.
And now the $875 billion Stimulus Package has bounced its way through Congress. One side has shouted "it's too much" and the other "it's not enough." The package includes tax cuts, tax breaks, and stimulus dollars, money for "shovel ready" projects.
So far, we have bailed out three banks, two auto corporations, and two government-owned mortgage companies In addition, we have poured billions of dollars into funding two wars.
In 2004, the three banks and two auto companies posted combined revenues of $58.4 billion. That's $1.6 million a day!
In order to reverse that income to a loss, they had to lose over $4 million a day over a four-year period. Is that a paper chase?
You and I know the old adage: the Golden Rule, "He who has the gold makes the rules." It would seem therefore that those in government do not need to be truthful, or care about what we have to say on any issues.
The Stimulus Package needs to succeed. If it fails, it will be a lose-lose proposition for each and every one of us, both Democrats and Republicans. That there was "not enough time to read the legislation" is not an acceptable excuse. One must conclude that when only three members of the minority party voted in favor of this legislation, the rest did not want the president to succeed. Republicans will not be able to spin such a failure. The Democratic leadership is failing in its bipartisan efforts and needs to be replaced with new leaders.
This is not a time to be silent. If we desire the stimulus efforts to work, we must support the president by pushing both parties of Congress into action.
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This column is sponsored by Cumberland Countians for Peace and Justice, an organization composed of representatives from various churches in the area, and dedicated by the local writers to the theme that the lion and the lamb can and must learn to live together and grow in their relationship toward one another to ensure a better world. Opinions expressed in “Lion and the Lamb” columns are not necessarily those of the Crossville Chronicle publisher, editor or staff. For more information, contact Emerson Abts, editor, at 277-5101.
