The idea that "government" can do no good is a pernicious idea that the corporate-capitalist sector of America has cleverly and insidiously infused into American society since Reagan's term began in 1981.
The corporate-capitalists hate government regulation of their businesses because it interferes with their unfettered profit making. The corporate capitalists have two main goals in their quest for ever greater profits: cut taxes on themselves as much as possible and remove government regulations as much as possible. In order to achieve these two goals the corporate-capitalists had to CONvince average Americans that "the government" or "big government" can do nothing right and that "the government" was the peoples' enemy.
When in fact the peoples' REAL enemy is corporate-capitalism itself. Without government regulatory agencies like e.g. OSHA the capitalists would run roughshod over the environment and the American people. I'm old enough to remember back in the 1960s when rivers in the mid-west were so polluted they would catch on fire. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/cuyahoga-river-caught-fire-least-dozen-times-no-one-cared-until-1969-180972444/ Government regulation ended this problem.
When the banks were deregulated in 1999 under the direction of President Clinton's Secretary of Treasury, Robert Rubin, the former CEO of the investment bank Goldman Sachs, the financial crises of 2008 was the disastrous outcome. As a result of this "financial crisis" trillions of dollars of public tax payer wealth was shifted into the pockets of private banks in the "too big to fail" bail-outs. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Too_big_to_fail#:~:text=For%20America's%20biggest%20banks%20the,and%20%244%20billion%20for%20AIG. Much of this done behind the backs of the American people. Banks had been strictly regulated by the federal government between 1933 and 1999 pursuant to the Glass-Steagall Act.
Without government oversight corporate-capitalist America will run roughshod over the American people. In a democratic-republic WE are the government. The American people have forgotten this.
The corporate-capitalists, on the other hand, care nothing for the American people. They have only one goal and one mission: to maximize their private profits. They lobby Congress to keep the federal minimum wage so low as to be a wage-slave rate of $7.25 an hour. They lobby Congress to cut their tax rates so the federal government and the American people bear the burden of a 23 trillion dollar debt. The corporate-capitalists in the iteration of the pharmaceutical companies infiltrate their government oversight and regulation agencies such as the Federal Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration so "Big Pharma" can foist dubious, hastily made, poorly manufactured vaccines on the public during the Covid hysteria making tens of billions of dollars of profits for themselves. (And such esteemed public intellectuals as Jeffrey Sachs is on the record stating that the Covid virus was probably deliberately manufactured in a laboratory in Wuhan, China.https://theintercept.com/2022/05/19/covid-lab-leak-evidence-jeffrey-sachs/)
In a democratic-republic "we the people" are the government. Semi-literate, propagandized by Fox News, poorly informed Americans need to get over the modern myth (or urban legend might be an appropriate term) that the government is the enemy. The government is the only thing that keeps their "capitalist masters" (to borrow a term from Karl Marx) from running over them roughshod.
Wake up, America! You have nothing to lose -- as Marx also said -- but your chains!
The problem, Americans need to overcome the Fox News propaganda and understand, is not "Big Government" and we don't need to "get the government off our backs" as Reagan used to spout so glibly. The problem is the economic system of corporate-capitalist private greed.
As a Southerner who moved to Minnesota in 1968 and never left except for many trips “home,” I appreciate your column today, Garrison. Thank you for showing your appreciation of this complex part of our country. I'll be there with you, singing hymns on the corner and loving my people—the ones I left so many years ago.
My first "tour of duty" down South was from 1987 to 1992. We moved frequently and lived in a lot of little towns. When we first moved to a town, everybody, and I mean everybody, asked us which denomination we belonged to. I was raised a Chicago liberal, but my political beliefs fit in nicely with what was called a "Southern Democrat."
My second tour of duty in the South started in 2016, after living for 24 years in the Adirondack mountains. Some things have changed since my first tour of duty based upon observation and interaction with these welcoming folks. Nobody, and I mean nobody, has asked us which denomination we belong to. For whatever reason, it appears that the evangelical edge has gone away. And so have the Southern Democrats. Well, they can be found, but you have to warm up to folks, gain their trust, and have heart-to-heart discussions around politics. Based upon the discussions I have had, the Southern Democrats felt politically homeless by both parties, and in general, feel the least uncomfortable with the Republicans. So that is where they are. A terrific group of people lost politically.
I wish the Democrats were truly inclusive, and at the same time, I wish that Republicans could show some sign of compassion. But these wishes of moderation will have to wait until we are inspired by a leader that can reach out to us all. Kind of like what you do Garrison.......
I was in Greenville on Row H and spent two of the best hours I’ve had in years wondering why I’d waited so long to see your red shoes in person. I sang, I laughed, I cried. But not so much as anybody’d have noticed although the lady next to me had on bedroom slippers and cotton gloves, and she was not one bit chagrined.
If I’d been on Row A I’d have held up a sign that said “I lived at 2144 Stanford Ave in St Paul and walked 4 blocks to Groveland Park Elementary School at the age of six back in 1951 when nobody’s ever heard of hurting a six year old walking to school.”
The size of the sign might have gotten me removed. So it wasn’t a practical idea.
But I’d have liked to have waved at Fred Newman whose beautiful mother was a friend here in this little west central GA town. Her hair was beautiful, like his.
I will remember the singing and the many damp cheeks around me for my days remaining.
The last concert I attended, not counting local symphony events, was Aretha Franklin in a gymnasium at Clemson University in the mid-60’s. You both left me with joy and a lot to think about.
I recently read an article in Psyche magazine about something called aesthetic chills, or frissons,. I just realized that this is your talent. Almost every column you write elicits that reaction. That raises craft to art.
What a wonderful post. I would also agree that most Republicans are lovable. They are not always correct and sometimes confused about what is important but they are lovable. Their antics and assertions make for a lively election season. It all makes the United States of America the outstanding and admired country that we are in this world.
You are a preacher in many ways. You realize that there is a power, a force above us that directs, guides to our true purpose in this reality. You spread the good word through letters, song and actions. You realize that riches and fame are fleeting and aren’t lasting goals in themselves. You reach the hearts of many by your shows by song and comedy. You are a present day disciple.
I enjoyed today's column; it was outstanding! As a lifelong Southerner who has traveled throughout our great nation, I sometimes wonder what makes this part of our country so unique. I believe it is because of our imperfections and our ability as we drive down a highway, most of us usually wave our hand or a friendly non of our head as a greeting. This is remarkable today among total strangers or waitresses who call you sweetie or darling. The humanity of the South can be quite remarkable!
Just so you know, I never share your ‘Ice Fishing is like Life’..metaphor without given full credit, although I have a modified version -Golf is like Life, only more so, which I claim but probably borrowed it, as well. Your one-liner about Finn extroverts also receives full credit, as it must. The Regional Humor prize certainly goes to you. This southerner could never get away with one-liners about ice fishing or Finn’s. And I wonder about a Minnesotan-turned Yankee liking grits and all those syrupy Lost-Cause leftovers. You don’t hear me claiming to like lutefisk?!
One of the very best of the great columns - well worth the price
fan of age 85, Fred Mikkelsen
The idea that "government" can do no good is a pernicious idea that the corporate-capitalist sector of America has cleverly and insidiously infused into American society since Reagan's term began in 1981.
The corporate-capitalists hate government regulation of their businesses because it interferes with their unfettered profit making. The corporate capitalists have two main goals in their quest for ever greater profits: cut taxes on themselves as much as possible and remove government regulations as much as possible. In order to achieve these two goals the corporate-capitalists had to CONvince average Americans that "the government" or "big government" can do nothing right and that "the government" was the peoples' enemy.
When in fact the peoples' REAL enemy is corporate-capitalism itself. Without government regulatory agencies like e.g. OSHA the capitalists would run roughshod over the environment and the American people. I'm old enough to remember back in the 1960s when rivers in the mid-west were so polluted they would catch on fire. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/cuyahoga-river-caught-fire-least-dozen-times-no-one-cared-until-1969-180972444/ Government regulation ended this problem.
When the banks were deregulated in 1999 under the direction of President Clinton's Secretary of Treasury, Robert Rubin, the former CEO of the investment bank Goldman Sachs, the financial crises of 2008 was the disastrous outcome. As a result of this "financial crisis" trillions of dollars of public tax payer wealth was shifted into the pockets of private banks in the "too big to fail" bail-outs. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Too_big_to_fail#:~:text=For%20America's%20biggest%20banks%20the,and%20%244%20billion%20for%20AIG. Much of this done behind the backs of the American people. Banks had been strictly regulated by the federal government between 1933 and 1999 pursuant to the Glass-Steagall Act.
Without government oversight corporate-capitalist America will run roughshod over the American people. In a democratic-republic WE are the government. The American people have forgotten this.
The corporate-capitalists, on the other hand, care nothing for the American people. They have only one goal and one mission: to maximize their private profits. They lobby Congress to keep the federal minimum wage so low as to be a wage-slave rate of $7.25 an hour. They lobby Congress to cut their tax rates so the federal government and the American people bear the burden of a 23 trillion dollar debt. The corporate-capitalists in the iteration of the pharmaceutical companies infiltrate their government oversight and regulation agencies such as the Federal Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration so "Big Pharma" can foist dubious, hastily made, poorly manufactured vaccines on the public during the Covid hysteria making tens of billions of dollars of profits for themselves. (And such esteemed public intellectuals as Jeffrey Sachs is on the record stating that the Covid virus was probably deliberately manufactured in a laboratory in Wuhan, China.https://theintercept.com/2022/05/19/covid-lab-leak-evidence-jeffrey-sachs/)
In a democratic-republic "we the people" are the government. Semi-literate, propagandized by Fox News, poorly informed Americans need to get over the modern myth (or urban legend might be an appropriate term) that the government is the enemy. The government is the only thing that keeps their "capitalist masters" (to borrow a term from Karl Marx) from running over them roughshod.
Wake up, America! You have nothing to lose -- as Marx also said -- but your chains!
The problem, Americans need to overcome the Fox News propaganda and understand, is not "Big Government" and we don't need to "get the government off our backs" as Reagan used to spout so glibly. The problem is the economic system of corporate-capitalist private greed.
You literally brought tears to my eyes, GK, as you often do! I thank you, Sir!
As a Southerner who moved to Minnesota in 1968 and never left except for many trips “home,” I appreciate your column today, Garrison. Thank you for showing your appreciation of this complex part of our country. I'll be there with you, singing hymns on the corner and loving my people—the ones I left so many years ago.
Glad the statues are removed NOT just painted over!
My first "tour of duty" down South was from 1987 to 1992. We moved frequently and lived in a lot of little towns. When we first moved to a town, everybody, and I mean everybody, asked us which denomination we belonged to. I was raised a Chicago liberal, but my political beliefs fit in nicely with what was called a "Southern Democrat."
My second tour of duty in the South started in 2016, after living for 24 years in the Adirondack mountains. Some things have changed since my first tour of duty based upon observation and interaction with these welcoming folks. Nobody, and I mean nobody, has asked us which denomination we belong to. For whatever reason, it appears that the evangelical edge has gone away. And so have the Southern Democrats. Well, they can be found, but you have to warm up to folks, gain their trust, and have heart-to-heart discussions around politics. Based upon the discussions I have had, the Southern Democrats felt politically homeless by both parties, and in general, feel the least uncomfortable with the Republicans. So that is where they are. A terrific group of people lost politically.
I wish the Democrats were truly inclusive, and at the same time, I wish that Republicans could show some sign of compassion. But these wishes of moderation will have to wait until we are inspired by a leader that can reach out to us all. Kind of like what you do Garrison.......
"Republican" seems more a personality type than any formal ideological statement.
Did you have breakfast at a Waffle House? A must for any Yankee wanting to experience the true South.
I was in Greenville on Row H and spent two of the best hours I’ve had in years wondering why I’d waited so long to see your red shoes in person. I sang, I laughed, I cried. But not so much as anybody’d have noticed although the lady next to me had on bedroom slippers and cotton gloves, and she was not one bit chagrined.
If I’d been on Row A I’d have held up a sign that said “I lived at 2144 Stanford Ave in St Paul and walked 4 blocks to Groveland Park Elementary School at the age of six back in 1951 when nobody’s ever heard of hurting a six year old walking to school.”
The size of the sign might have gotten me removed. So it wasn’t a practical idea.
But I’d have liked to have waved at Fred Newman whose beautiful mother was a friend here in this little west central GA town. Her hair was beautiful, like his.
I will remember the singing and the many damp cheeks around me for my days remaining.
The last concert I attended, not counting local symphony events, was Aretha Franklin in a gymnasium at Clemson University in the mid-60’s. You both left me with joy and a lot to think about.
Some fine woman that fills the 3part makes us complete as we are meant to be. Sing on !
All those angry republicans collecting social security and medicare from the big, bad government.
I recently read an article in Psyche magazine about something called aesthetic chills, or frissons,. I just realized that this is your talent. Almost every column you write elicits that reaction. That raises craft to art.
What a wonderful post. I would also agree that most Republicans are lovable. They are not always correct and sometimes confused about what is important but they are lovable. Their antics and assertions make for a lively election season. It all makes the United States of America the outstanding and admired country that we are in this world.
You are a preacher in many ways. You realize that there is a power, a force above us that directs, guides to our true purpose in this reality. You spread the good word through letters, song and actions. You realize that riches and fame are fleeting and aren’t lasting goals in themselves. You reach the hearts of many by your shows by song and comedy. You are a present day disciple.
I enjoyed today's column; it was outstanding! As a lifelong Southerner who has traveled throughout our great nation, I sometimes wonder what makes this part of our country so unique. I believe it is because of our imperfections and our ability as we drive down a highway, most of us usually wave our hand or a friendly non of our head as a greeting. This is remarkable today among total strangers or waitresses who call you sweetie or darling. The humanity of the South can be quite remarkable!
If I didn't know better, I would think this was written by my 24 year old son!
Just so you know, I never share your ‘Ice Fishing is like Life’..metaphor without given full credit, although I have a modified version -Golf is like Life, only more so, which I claim but probably borrowed it, as well. Your one-liner about Finn extroverts also receives full credit, as it must. The Regional Humor prize certainly goes to you. This southerner could never get away with one-liners about ice fishing or Finn’s. And I wonder about a Minnesotan-turned Yankee liking grits and all those syrupy Lost-Cause leftovers. You don’t hear me claiming to like lutefisk?!