Why Do So Many Americans Lack Empathy?

You nailed it... that IS why it is so expensive! (Greed.)

 

Correct... the wealthiest few percent are literally SIPHONING-OFF the well being of working people; they have indeed gone too far in doing the same and it WILL affect them also.

 

What IS enough?
Do you think the government is better at managing the money and making decisions or the foundations and organizations in the private sector?

Not enough, is not enough of an answer.

 

We ALL need to be asking that question to EVERYONE.

There IS as point in this reality, where anything can become 'excessive'.

Profit, wealth and power themselves, are TERRIBLE motivators which can corrupt human beings. Checks and balances devised and applied will always be necessary... as long as we are HUMAN (we DO need government).

That is why the general dialogue of MANY MORE AMERICANS needs to include that question. Yeah, it is a question that pertains to the very SOUL of this nation. In fact, too many want to AVOID that question... when it should be OUT IN FRONT of us all.

I'm all for people gaining 'wealth', but not to the point where it siphons-off the well-being of an entire nation.

 

I fully agree with your statement:
"Profit, wealth and power themselves, are TERRIBLE motivators which can corrupt human beings."

That is one of the reason that Congress is such a failure (regardless of party). We have life long politicians, who use "pork" to prime their own pumps, receive huge tracks of money from special interest, unions, and business in campaign financing, and the lobbying in the 100s of millions.

Remove some of these self-serving profit centers and I think you reduce a big part of the problem.

As for private foundations, I think Bill Gates said it best (as I paraphrase) he manages his foundation like a business - they must see results and be run efficiently. He doesn't think the government could do what he is doing - at the productivity levels he is doing it.

I think he is just summing up a great quote by Milton Friedman when he said:

"There are four ways in which you can spend money:

1. You can spend your own money on yourself. When you do that, you try to get the most value for your money.

2. You can spend your own money on someone else. For example, purchasing a gift, you may not be so careful about the contents, but you’re very careful about the cost.

3. You can spend other people’s money on yourself. Which means you’ll probably be having a great lunch.

4. Finally you can spend other people’s money on other people. When this happens you’re never concerned about cost or value. And that’s government and how tax payer’s money is spent."

 

Absolutely spot on.
My son is in the early college program sponsored by the Gates'. My other will be too. They'll have associates degrees when they graduate. It gives them one extra year of High School too.

That will help us a lot with the college thing and we're grateful.

Thank you Bill and Melinda Gates !!!!

 

But when government does the exact same thing it's bad? hmmmm

 

The response was really to a poster making the following statement: "the few are rich, mean-minded, cold-hearted, selfish, greedy (*)(*)(*)(*)ehawks who monopolise all the goodies. "

The government is beyond operating in a productive manner, it is bankrupt, printing money to fund programs that are broker, asking China to lend more money, we have the lowest test scores in public schools - but spend the most on education, we can't manage our way out of a wet paper bag.

Even when Buffet was asked - why not just write a big check to the government, his answer:

"I think that on balance the Gates Foundation, my daughter's foundation, my two sons' foundations, will do a better job with lower administrative costs and better selection of beneficiaries than the government."


Government's ability to manage money, balance a budget (let alone even draft one), manage staff and operations = has been an EPIC FAILURE.

I am happy to give you the laundry list if you haven't been paying attention - you do know we just got downgraded by S&P (part of their downgraded was because the government can't even get out of it's own way!)

 

So the system needs to be reformed. Government is run by people. It is not some monolithic entity that has mysterious workings. Elect more intelligent politicians, and make the federal agencies more accountable. I"m not disagreeing with a lot of what you say, just that a government does not inherently have to be dysfunctional.

 

The irony is that more intelligent people will NOT run and it is these life long politicians that think we live in a corporate elected plutocracy that over see the federal agencies.

You know the jokes about working in the post office or for the IRS, that is the entire system of government.

It IS inherently dysfunctional because the system is currently run by life long politicians that run it as a plutocracy.

for starters:

Add term limits
Institute campaign financing laws
Remove "pork" and "earmarks"
Remove lobbying

Then what will Frank, Reid, Dodd, Pelosi, and a host of other life long politicians do? You have dried up their drug supply.

Of course that will never happen, because we have to get them to vote to do that.

Wake up - it is a Plutocracy dressed up like a Republic. Most Americans don't even know that Democracy is not even a system of government. The sheeple think that Beck, Maddow, O'Reily, and Mathews are NEWS - they are blinded by ideology. It's called OpEd for a reason.

 

All of these are good ideas. The only one I'm undecided on is term limits, but I'm open to be swayed either way on that. But the campaign finance laws would make it level paying field. Everyone would get the same funding. Pork and earmarks are not a huge contributor to the debt, but it could deter people from getting cozy with politicians for special favors. As to lobbying, it depends on what you mean. I can lobby my local rep by writing letters, calling, etc. This part would be really difficult to implement in practice but I agree something has to change.

 

A good set of examples for giving by the rich, along with their reasoning, is here: http://givingpledge.org/#enter

Each person has a letter that they enclosed explaining their reasons for donating.

 

True that Pork and Earmarks are NOT a huge contributor to the debt.

They ARE - however- a MASSIVE contributor to FAVORS (fund raising, votes to special interest, etc.)

I would argue that Pork and Earmarks have a greater negative influence than the actual dollars represent.

I am talking about Special Interest, Unions, and Corporations. Example, GE already has spent $40 million this year alone in Congressional Lobbying efforts. Now ask yourself WHO is Obama's new economic adviser? Oh - wait - is it GE CEO Jeffrey Immelt?


Simple True Example: Money = Favors and Favors can be BIG!

• GE is one of Obama's biggest donors to his campaign.
• GE receives government bailout support and special funding for their GE Capital division.
• GE spends $25m (2009), $40m (2010), and so far $15m (2011) in Congressional Lobbying.
• GE pays NO federal income tax in 2010.
• GE get's controversial contracts with Chinese government - to build engines and equipment that COULD be consider weapon's grade. Government ignores the problem.
• CEO Jeffrey Immelt is named Obama's economic adviser.

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Please note - this goes for BOTH PARTIES. I am not trying to make this sound like a Democrat vs. Republican thing, it is just a political thing.

 

Laughably ignorant of the facts.

Oil Corporation's profits have remained between 7.5% and 9.5%. That is not a big number. The majority of their revenues are poured back into keeping up with environmental regulation compliance and green tech, as well as exploration.

You both simply don't know what you're talking about, and continue to spout leftist talking points that have no factual basis but do attack one of the primary backbones of our economic stability.

Don't be stupid.