Can You Feel It Too?

       There have been several items of consternation lately that I've noticed, in particular. The National Chamber of Commerce has been leading a fight internationally against any form of tobacco smoking legislation. Our Supreme court has voted that it's more important to allow coal-fired energy generation plants to kill people with mercury and a number of other carcinogenic and toxic pollutants than to make them pay to eliminate those pollutants.
       And these as well as others are made possible by a force in Washington that is primarily located on 'K' Street. That is to say, lobbyists. Did you know that there are presently over 400 former legislators who are now lobbying Congress? And that doesn't count family members of former and present legislators, or their former staffers. Did you know that former legislators still have certain privileges like access to Congressional cafeterias, etc, that allow them to mingle at will?
       They claim that in the past you earned a lot of money then ran for office. Now you run for office to make a lot of money afterward. A year or two ago I listened to a Congressman ask "Do you really think I would sell my integrity and position in Congress for money?" Ya know, I really do think most of them are actually doing just that. The influence that 'Dark Money' has on our government is like a stranglehold.
       It wouldn't be such a horrible thing, this influence peddling, if everybody had an equal opportunity to influence our representatives. The problem is that influence is only available to the very rich. If you can't afford to buy government, you have no business complaining about it. Heck, even the vote is purchased. It's done by buying a media outlet and converting it's news reporting into a partisan rumor mill selling propaganda.
       All that rumbling being heard around the country is not mini-earthquakes, it's our founding fathers rolling over in their graves.