The Great Things

William H. (Let the Public be Damned) Vanderbilt - Robber Baron

Among the great things about the 20th century in America, was that from Teddy Roosevelt (TR), and the start of the Progressive era, through his cousin Franklin Roosevelt (FDR), and the New Deal, and in fact continuing even through Eisenhower and Nixon (up until Ronald Reagan), the needs of the average Joe, or Sally, in America were given a lot of political attention. Great strides were taken in bringing justice and fairness into the social fabric of our Nation, and institutions such as labor unions, and social welfare programs, and great society programs, and, in particular during the years of the Great Depression, jobs programs were funded, encouraged and facilitated by those both within government, and without.

Prior to the Progressive Era had existed the great Robber Barons of our history, capitalists and industrialists who had pretty much had their own way with the politicians, through bribery, corruption and other forms of back room chicanery, such that democracy did not have much of an effect, and the capitalists were allowed to exploit the human resources of America right and left. It was a lousy time – between the end of the Civil War and the beginnings of the 20th century – to be a laborer, or to be poor in general. Millions were quite literally worked to death in the factories and in the meat packing industry and in the animal slaughtering houses, as well as while building the Transcontinental Railroad, and wildcatting oil wells out West, and while forging steel along the Great Lakes, and so forth and so on. It was a real capitalist’s holiday. Hardly any law protected the worker, and what few laws there were, were seldom if ever enforced, and the barons of industry treated most human beings as if they were nothing but cattle.

With TR, and then with FDR all that began to change fairly extensively, and regulations and laws went into effect protecting the little guy, and attempting to see to it that the little guy got his fair shake out of the deal. In fact, TR’s programs of improvements were called the “Square Deal” programs, and FDR’s would later be known as the “New Deal” programs, all intended to spread the wealth and wonderfulness of America in fairly democratic ways. Fair labor standards were instituted along with the right to organize and unionize, and to go out on strike; numerous financial safeguards were put into place to protect people’s savings and bank accounts; farmers got a deal in that farm prices were in a sense standardized, and protected against wild market fluctuations; the forty hour workweek was eventually made standard, and work over that was to be compensated for by the paying of overtime wages; social security was begun, and retirees now had at least something to look forward to besides living in the poor house, or being kicked out onto the streets; workmen’s compensation laws were implemented; and laid off workers could draw unemployment.

During the 1950s, at the end of World War II, and the Korean conflict, the greatest expansion of the middle-class in world history took place within the United States, and most people could look forward to a life of dignity, with owning a modest house perhaps, and a couple of used automobiles, and enough in the bank to cover emergencies and to send the kids to college. The tax rates were in some cases radically progressive, certainly as compared with today’s, but yet businesses continued to expand, and the economy chugged right along with suitable employment available for just about anyone who wanted and sought it. Almost anyone within the United States could work hard and receive just compensation sufficient to the modest needs of the time.

Sadly, none of that is any longer true. The Komodo capitalists, who seem to have been all that time lurking, have now reemerged with a vengeance, and by all indications fully intend to economically enslave our Nation once more, to return things, if not all the way back to the beginnings of the industrial revolution in England (and they would even go that far, or further, if they could), at least to the time when labor received squat for their efforts, and were barely able to get by. Such greed on the part of the assholes is unconscionable, yet they have found their champions in Ronald Reagan, and to some extent with GHW Bush, and now in particular with that current corporation masquerading as a human being by the name of George Dubya. They have begun, and in many instances almost finished, returning America to the age of the Robber Barons.

They have systematically begun to dismantle worker’ protections, and erode the overtime laws, and refuse categorically to even discuss the minimum wage, as well as limiting the power of unions, and threatening to screw with even social security. For years now, (Truman was the first who actually tried), they have refused to allow national health insurance, and are more than willing to pay whatever it takes to stop it in its tracks, and have done so over and over again. Once more the capitalists reign supreme in Washington D.C., and have politically and socially dumbed down America to the point where hardly anyone even notices, or worse cares, what these carnivores are doing. At the moment we are on the road to ruin, as far as anyone not making at least $300,000 a year is concerned, and by all indications mean to continue until the citizenry is once again reduced to slavery, and perpetual misery. Only the capitalists stand to benefit.

This is a terrible time in America, wrapped up in the meanest and most selfish of public spirits, and, should you ever hope to enjoy life once again, had better be stopped where it is. And even then, it may be too late.