Regardless of who you supported during our long drawn out presidential
campaign, or where your head is, at this moment, I strongly suggest
that you go to Flashpoints and listen to what Bernie Sanders has to
say.
Flashpoints Archives | KPFA
https://kpfa.org/program/flashpoints/
Bernie's suggestion that we must face our own shortcomings if we are
going to build a strong government of the People, is a no brainer.
But I disagree with his belief that we are on the verge of becoming an
Oligarchy. I would suggest to Bernie Sanders that he reassess his
statement. I am convinced that the United States of America, has
been an Oligarchy from its very inception.
What else could we call it when the constitution limited participation
to White Men 21 years of age and older, Landholders, and those who
possessed a certain amount of wealth.
The majority of people living in the Colonies had few rights, and no
say in the Colonial Government. Following the Revolution, they still
had no say in the new government. No, we are not on the brink of
becoming an Oligarchy. We are on the brink of breaking the iron grip
the American Oligarchy has held on us from day one. Of course we, the
working class people, have chipped away at some of the conditions that
prevented full participation by us. Slavery was ended and Negroes
were given full citizenship. Women gained the right to vote. LGBT
people gained the right to full citizenship, including the right to
marry the person of their choice. The vote was given to all citizens,
and then later was set at 18 years of age.
But even as these changes came into being, the American Oligarchy dug
in its heels and fought back. Negroes, now referred to as Blacks,
were persecuted from the very day they were set free, and continue to
be so persecuted, threatened, and kept out of full participation in
the government. Gerrymandering has been used to ensure that the
candidates supporting the Ruling Class, have the inside track to being
elected, and for extra insurance, restrictions on who can vote, as
well as election tampering have been set in place. Women are still
about 21 cents on the dollar less equal to men performing the same
job. Private prisons have become our newest industry, holding a
majority of People of Color, and providing very cheap labor. School
children are being blocked from college if they come from Lower Class
families. And young people graduating from college find that there
are few jobs and huge debts owed on their student loans. There's much
more, but you get the idea. The Working Class, which includes the
majority of Americans, is being dominated and controlled by the
American Oligarchy, the Corporate American Empire.
Bernie Sanders is right when he says we, the People, need to develop a
Plan of Action and some Goals. He reminds us that those in control
will do all they can do in order to divide us and turn us against one
another. That tired old saying really is true: United we stand,
divided we fall!
Carl Jarvis
