No one seems to be writing opinion pieces quite the way I would, so I decided to do it myself.

The name? Taverns are places where one goes to discuss the interesting events and things in the world, so this is my tavern.

I will offer my views on politics, economics, and whatever else strikes my fancy.
I will occasionally publish the entire article from another journal for purposes of causing discussion.

 

Why is Bush President? He is clearly an ignorant fool with no abilities at all.

Why is George Bush President? Three reasons:

First. America has become a plutocracy ruled by moneyed elites especially in the last thirty years. ]Read "Perfectly Legal" by David Cay Johnston.]
Second. Americans generally don’t vote and consider the antics of the political class unimportant to them.
Third. Bush belongs to the plutocracy and could be pushed to win the election, partly because of the second item above.

Let me elaborate.

First: America is becoming a plutocracy.

1. The tax system is being revised to take money from the poor and middle class and give it to the rich. Then the estate tax is being eliminated to make such collections of wealth self-sustaining no matter what the merit of the individuals who have it.
2. Corporations are run by the CEOs, and the CEO’s are the ones getting the greatest payment from them.
3. Politics today are completely controlled by those who have the money to spend controlling politicians.
4. Control of wealth and your relationship to those who have wealth is more important to personal success than personal merit. This is especially true in government and in older industries.

Second: Americans for the most part do not bother to vote.

1. Many Americans really believe that only private enterprise matters and government is mostly in the way of private enterprise.
2. Many more think their vote doesn’t matter anyway.
3. Those who think about government and politics have generally gotten the idea that their ideas dominate society so that they do not have to organize and work with others to defend them. Voting is enough. America IS a meritocracy today, so why should we fight to make it so? But this is based on history, not on the current news.
4. Most people believe that our elections work well and that the elections administrators will prevent vote fraud. Liberals believe in systems of government and on operating them on a “management by exception” basis. Conservatives believe that nothing happens unless a person makes it happen, so they become more involved in politics. As a result, conservatives are involved in politics and liberals are passive.
5. Most of us understand that the plutocrats have taken control of government. Wealth gets you elected, not merit.

Third: Bush himself.

1. Big money controls the governments of the US now. He has none of the “Meritocracy” infection most Americans have.
2. Name recognition. People thought he was his father.
3. He is truly a born-again Christian Fundamentalist and could attract that group who totally hate the modern world.
4. Related to 3, this nation has a major strain of anti-intellectualism and he met their requirements. Gore, and Clinton before him, are anathema to that group.
5. He comes from an old established Republican power family. Breeding is important to them.
6. He can place a genial façade on the rather nasty Republican programs.
7. He was Governor of the second most populous state in the Union.
8. He destroys his opponents and critics rather than debate them.
9. For the right wing, winning and getting power is more important than the health of the American nation. Bush is an adequate vessle for their power-hunger.



posted by Richard at 5:57 PM