Today’s topic is inspired by Presidential politics and the seemingly endless banter over campaign finance, the use of earmarks in Congressional legislation and the direction of both our country and our world. While the concept of special interests is important to the process of dismantling discrimination, this goal is only achievable by adhering to the ideals of equality. Unfortunately, the reality clashes with the idealistic goals – it seems rather than empowering the powerless, it is now a means of controlling corporate turf.
The theory behind special interest groups and lobbyists is rooted in the realities of American society. In a day and age where women and African Americans were treated as second-class citizens, it was a necessary (and perhaps still is) to make sure the interests of discriminated people were heard as legislators advance the common interest. Its not about giving one group more power or advantage than another, its about insuring equal opportunity and representation for all.
Unfortunately, the downside of lobbyist influence has dwarfed any idealistic benefits that the lobbyist system may offer for several reasons. It permits people to frame their relationship with the greater society in terms of their interests and does not encourage a “common interests” view point. This fragments society into competing interests rather than bringing people together in terms of common interest and is the greatest motivating factor in American government today.
Money now drives legislative representation. And, who’s got the money? Corporations do. Today billions of tax dollars are being directed, not to projects of common interest, but to projects of corporate interests. And, here we find a perfect example of a house of cards – a system that has taken on a life of its own. There should be no such thing as a “corporate interest” because corporations are economic devices created to serve the common interest. Therefore, corporations cannot have any interest other than what is deemed to be of common interest.
There’s an anti-meth advertising campaign in Los Angeles. Billboards show a person with a vacant expression and alone by themselves. They are captioned “I lost me to meth”. Well, in a way our leaders in Washington have lost themselves, not to meth, but to something even more harmful to society and its future – to money and power. While I believe the system of representing special interests has done some good by empowering minorities, the ultimate goal is to eliminate discrimination and to represent one interest – our common interest. And, what is our common interest? It is social justice, equality of opportunity, peace; it is the world we want to create – it is our common future.
Related Entries
Our Common Future
Policy Makers Gamble with Our Common Future
