When Greed Grows Up

It seems in the United States recently, we have seen a rash of examples of what happens when the quest for "more", and the growing, almost gnawing need to have it all, regardless of who it just might belong to, paints a picture of how crime takes greed by the hand until it is all grown-up and on its own two feet.
If you take Mr. Madoff and the irreplaceable trust and life hope that so many people had, you have to realize that it may have started small, then the greed grew until it encompassed what everyone else had and then some. From Mr. Madoff himself, to his wife, and their family, there is no doubt in the mind of the country that they knew and were part of the grab for all that was out there, regardless of the hearts and futures that were trashed and discarded. People lost the homes that they retired in, the money that was suppose to last them until they passed on, and a legacy to their family that would include a sense of beauty and peace as they aged. This was turned over into an ugly, almost unbelievable attempt to take from everyone so that "all" belonged only to the Madoff family. When Mrs. Madaff requested that she remain owner of the homes, as well as the bank account, would she have allowed the "victims" the same courtesy? Could they have kept the property they waited their entire lives for, or the funds that were suppose to insure that they could have a "golden" retirement as has always been the end to the perfect American dream. They did not have a choice, cannot be given back what was taken, and their lives have been altered, never to be what they were, let alone what they should have been because of a life spent working and hoping that there was always greener grass as you advanced in years. Mrs. Madoff fears losing this scenario, as do her sons. Sympathy is not forthcoming because the pain of so many was caused by the overwhelming greed of a handful.
AIG, and the other Wall Street mega corporations have done much the same. They wanted to make sure that they not only led the industry in profits, but that if it all came tumbling down, they could still stand up and watch the sun rise. These company CEO's and their counterparts, who are suppose to be intelligent in their fields of choice, knew that the "bubble" that they perpetrated would eventually burst; however, the flak would come to those who only wanted a taste of the dreams their parents told them about as they grew up, or the vision and lessons about keeping your nose to the grindstone so that you are rewarded in the end. The wrong side got rewarded, and those who struggled will have to continue their struggle. Even those who had no part in the mortgage gamble, or the banking bad-decisions, or they never toyed with other people's money, are faced with factory doors chained and locked, food that should be a guarantee of life has become a challenge to pay for, and leading your children to the land of hope and bright futures, will just have to wait.
The white collar crime of "greed" exceeds anyone's vision of what could happen when a handful of individuals make the concerted effort that all is their's and the rest of the nation will just have to adjust and live a lifestyle they only saw in still pictures of the Great Depression. Mrs. Madoff fears losing her jet-setting daily life, the fact that she not only had one home but several, and the choicest of the choice were hers. It was not enough and the pain will undoubtedly be more stinging and unrelenting because sooner or later the faces of the true "victims" are out there as you walk down the street, or sit in the park. The faces of children cold because their jackets are not adequate, the faces of the parents who come out of motel rooms that are made for two people but now house a family, and worse, the faces of an invisible nation that will find trust hard to come by, and belief in a fair system of capitalism as only a pipe hope. They are all out there and there is no street, state, or section of the U.S. that has risen above the tragedy of crime growing up.
It didn't have to happen, but it did. It might have been prevented, but it wasn't. It should teach everyone a lesson, but the pain stands in the way. However you slice the current economy, the loss of billions through the Madoff scam, being mugged in the park seems like just a walk in that same park. What used to be construed as horrendous in behavior has become "typical" on the evening news. Greed is everywhere you look, and whether you try to step around it, or cross the street to avoid it, it is no longer a child's game. It has reached its power, and it needs to be restrained. There will always be victims and there will always be schemers. The balance is in how a nation takes hold of a very bad situation, and when every single individual realizes that no one is above another, nor are they below each other either. They need to walk side by side, and greed will have to wither and die for there is no place for it to hide. We have seen it's face andtherefore it is hunted and will never find peace.
The nation's perception that there are those "who have" and there are those "who have not" must change. While bank account balances will never be equal, respect for the individual and relinquishing the need to suppress so that a person can rise to new heights, must be eradicated. No person can have it all and no person should have nothing. If Mr. Madoff could have lived in a homeless shelter for one day, would he take homes away from those he did? If Mrs. Madoff found herself with no funds for the evening meal, would she remove the prized entree from the tables of all the investors, and claim it as hers? The examples could go on without end, but the sad reality is that when the crime of greed takes over a person, they are truly unrelenting in acquiring what they could never have on their own merits. They take from everyone because they cannot leave anything for anyone else. The drive must be so rigid that if all is not in their grasp, then no one can have it either. Sad when you ponder how some live this type of life, when power, money, and greed have the freedom to grow up.
Something to think about
©Arleen M. Kaptur March, 2009

Talk Radio - It's Full of Pork

It may be old-fashioned to think that radio was a form of entertainment in days gone by. Today it has become a way to intimidate, threaten, and rally the troops towards hatred, greed, and retaliation.

Under the Bush administration, it would be considered high treason to say anything demeaning against the President or the Vice President for that matter. We were in war and this would never have been allowed. You would find home-land security on your driveway and the SWAT teams on your roof.

We are still at war, but with the new administration, talk-show hosts are asking the listening public to hope and pray that the current administration fails and that cartoons of racial undertones are funny. Some talk show hosts are telling tales of underground move-ments to take back the country and to counter any move from the Democratic Party.

While freedom of speech is presented as a defense to such verbal abuse, we as a people listen, laugh, and find it enjoyable as we head to work or take the kids to school. Consider, how-ever, that the ride to work is probably short-lived as unemploy-ment nears record numbers, courtesy of a former administration who decided that bombs, and artillery was more important than jobs and schools. Some believe that a war makes a land prosperous. This spoken by a lawmaker on national radio and television.
If war was so good for a country, why are we in this deep
recession with the money problems that we currently have to
endure. We have been at war for well over six years, and with
two wars going on at the same time, why are we not in the lap of
luxury and enjoying a bountiful lifestyle?

This type of scenario is morally sick. War kills and destroys, but those "with vision" made profits from no-bid war contracts, supplying guns and ammo, and giving security companies the right to shoot and kill, at their discretion. As a society, we should have hung our heads in shame, but we did the right thing - we decided that "change" was needed and this came in the form of a new administration.

Legislators like Mr. McConnell from Kentucky and Mr. Boehner from Ohio are loud, and vehement as they denounce not only the ideas, but the periods and commas that they believe were missed in a document. In other words, they would be against Santa Claus if he was part of the new administration. This type of "idealism" is harmful and childish. If no new ideas came from the Republican rule for eight years prior, then what makes any idea unacceptable and to be denounced and to make people believe that such ideas are conceived in the back-rooms of demon terror. Talk radio feels that freedom can allow it to create unrest, unjust assumptions, and personal insults towards anyone and everyone who does not toe the line to a single drum beat.
That single drum beat brought pain at the pump, and Wall Street,
car companies, and banking institutions to come with tin cups and
haggard faces to the very people they enjoyed taking advantage of,
in the first place. What goes around, comes around fits this, don't
you think?

No party has or ever will have all the answers, but at least doors are opened and windows are allowing a breath of fresh air. If there is a source of contention, then speak the words, but do it with civility and honor. Mr. Limbaugh fits into neither of these words, and if he is the new voice of the Republican party, then prayers are in order because our young deserve better and an example of such abusive behavior should not be tolerated by parents or adults.

Talk Radio needs to clean house a bit and to ask everyone to hope that the administration will fail is Unamerican. You cannot be an American and fight any new ideas, methods, or department leaders. It is a very short time since the new Administration began, but the loss of an election is no cause for such bitterness and hatred marketing. They had their chance, they failed, and hopefully, they will change their ways. Public input was ignored, the public was closed out of documents and dealings, and money was given, spent and could not be accounted for. I still remember one prominent Treasury official stating, "How could you keep account of billions of dollars?". The public should ask in return "How could you not?". We are in a dire economic situation and to allow Talk Radio, both male and female to denounce, threaten and intimidate is allowing freedom to be turned into tyranny.

Radio is a wonderful invention and should be used for the purpose of informing, and entertaining. It is not informative to hear "hate" preached and it is not entertaining to be told that there are "underground" groups forming to make sure that this country is taken back - ask yourself what this country would be taken back to - war, secret meetings, shredded documents, kick-backs, profits from devastation and death, prisons that caused torture to smear its ugly tar onto an entire nation of decent, and hard working people. Companies abused money they took for jobs they never performed, Wall Street and the banking industry gave the high-five when they knew that the money bubble would burst but they had already put into place their billions in "perks" and "parties." If you want to take the country back - take it to a time when radio was family-oriented and you did not have to cover the ears of your children when the likes of radio jockeys rode their mouths like spoiled, arrogant children who have no control, morals, or pride. Talk Radio - it's time to grow up and do what Radio was intended for.
Something to think about
©Arleen M. Kaptur March, 2009