Our leaders are well aware of these statistics but do not hope for any remedies in the near future. The truth is that our government, and that includes us, is no longer in charge. The real truth is that Big Business is in charge and our government has sold out. Our elected leaders are completely dependent on Big Business both to get elected and to stay elected.
I do not anticipate any change in this in the foreseeable future.
1. Neither the Democrats nor the Republicans will touch the growing inequalities for to do so would require making adjustments in our particular form of capitalism. Simply put, can you see a majority of our leaders willing to stand up to Big Business?
2. There is no evidence that state and federal governments are interested in supporting those who exist on the lower rungs of the socio-economic ladder. In fact, governments are more interested in continuing to cut back on services to those in our communities who are in need of support.
Then there is another statistic that is surely connected to those above. The U.S. has 5% of the world’s population, and 25% of the population in jails and prisons. In my gut, I suspect that if we look deeper into that 25%, we would find the overwhelming percentage of inmates would be non-caucasian and poor. Further, the percentage of white-collar criminals would be very small because in a system driven by money, those with financial power know how to subvert the system and our governing system looks the other way.
No longer do we have a government of, for, and by the people. It has been gerrymandered and become a government for the few – the white, the wealthy and the powerful who are basically interested in consolidating power while the others be damned.
For the immediate future I have little hope. I know that others are despairing and angry. I believe the situation will become far worse before it gets better. My stock is in the more distant future when something else will happen. It might happen from within but, then again, it might happen from without for we are in a truly global world now. There will be lessons for us to learn as a nation, as a people. It will be an exciting and challenging time but it will be painful.