[geeks] geeks Digest, Vol 157, Issue 2

[Sandwich Maker]

" From: Fred <fred at MISER.MISERNET.NET>
" 
" []
" 
" > From: adh at an.bradford.ma.us (Sandwich Maker)
" >
" > []
" > small penalties are just part of the cost of doing business,
" > especially if you can get someone else to pay them.  lawyers are for
" > negotiating large penalties down to small ones.
" 
" To me, that's a problem.  I was reading an article the other day about
" "corporate death penalty" and while I'm not that far in the spectrum,
" there *must* be a way to make the penalties severe enough where it "hurts"
" vs. just making it the cost of doing business.

i agree.  however, we've allowed the corporations and .1% wealthiest
people to change our system so that money makes the rules.  'citizens
united vs. fec' is a key example.  they've got the finest
congresscritters money can buy...

[aside: some years ago, a university psych dept profiled national
politicians from their collected public utterances.  there was a lot
of scatter, but the most common personality type craved power and was
short on ethics.  they didn't say sociopath...]

citizens united aside, corporations are not people.  corporations by
definition have no morals, ethics, conscience, empathy, hearts, or
remorse.  they have money and the drive to make money.  along with
that, they've collected lawyers to keep them legal, lawyers to get
them out of trouble, lawyers to minimize the damage when they can't
wriggle out, and lobbyists.  the sociopathic wealthy behave much the
same.  both will keep pushing to have things their way.  both can hire
staff to push for them.

" > i suspect that the number of folks who really are welfare deadbeats at
" > heart is only a small fraction of the number trapped in the system, as
" > phil was.
" 
" I wouldn't even opine on the percentages.  However, being trapped or being
" a deadbeat while different sides of the coin, are both still a problem.
" There should be a way to punish the deadbeats while at the same time stop
" folks with legitimate need from falling in that hole or having to deal
" with a catch-22 like Phil did.

yes, and it's not a straightforward, simple, or obvious solution or
we'd have figured it out by now.

" Without going too far off the deep end, it would be nice if there were
" some type of technological breakthough that couldn't be hidden or
" squashed by the rich-elite and that was obtainable in a
" straightforward fashion that would level the playing field and remove a
" lot of the problems that capitalism causes ... dirt cheap energy,
" healthcare breakthrough, *something* ...

it'll never happen as long as money buys influence.  that's the
achilles heel of capitalism.
________________________________________________________________________
Andrew Hay                                  the genius nature
internet rambler                            is to see what all have seen
adh at an.bradford.ma.us                       and think what none thought