[ExI] Capitalism 2.0 was Status as human motivator

[The Avantguardian]

----- Original Message ----
> From: Mirco Romanato <painlord2k at libero.it>
> To: ExI chat list <extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org>
> Sent: Sun, May 1, 2011 11:07:11 AM
> Subject: Re: [ExI] Capitalism 2.0 was Status as human motivator
> 
> Il 01/05/2011 15:50, BillK ha scritto:

> > You appear to know very little about how the Wall Street criminals work.

> > The government regulators are in the pocket of the banks. The laws do
> > not get enforced because they are paid off by the billionaires on Wall
> > Street. The super rich ignore laws because money pays off all little
> > problems.

It's not just the banks. Most government agencies mandated to regulate a 
particular industry end up getting in bed with that industry. Sometimes 
literally.  It's called regulatory capture:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regulatory_capture

 
> > In 2007 they went to the Fed and said either you pay us off with a
> > trillion dollar bailout or we crash the world financial system. Guns
> > to the head are not just mechanical devices.
> 
> This is a reason, not an excuse, for the Fed or the government behaviour.
> The government could have nationalized the bank and saved them. Then
> they could have fired all executives and throw the book at them. Making
> them pay all the bonuses out of their nose.

The big picture of what is going on is called the "Iron Triangle". It so weird 
that people on either side of the political spectrum blame one vertex of the 
triangle or another but so few see that the whole damn triangle stinks of 
corruption.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_triangle_(US_politics)

And here is a graph that shows that special interests recieve $222 in pork for 
every $1 they spend on a campaign contribution. The weird thing is that 
judges rule that bribing politicians *before* they get elected is protected by 
"free speech" even if the person doing the bribing is a foreign national. But 
then again most judges are elected officials themselves.

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Money_96.pdf&page=1
 
> The government decided to be in the pocket of big banks and save them at
> the expenses of the people (in reality it decided it long time ago and
> it probably don't remember when it was not there). They are to be blamed
> as much, if not more, than the bankers. Because, if the government want
> they can change the rules. If they don't it is because they like the
> game as it is.

What we need to do is ignore the million dollar TV commercials that trick us 
into blaming the "other idealogy" for this mess and realize that liberals, 
conservatives, libertarians, independents, and essentially *everyone* who can't 
afford to buy politicians in exchange for pork are all in the same sinking boat. 
Then we need to realize that whenever a mainstream candidate starts talking 
ideology, it is all just to obfuscate his or her real agenda. Then maybe we can 
have intelligent discussions about solutions instead of endless finger 
pointing and shouting matches. Perhaps we might even collectively figure out how 
to get someone like this elected to high office:  

"I too have been a close observer of the doings of the Bank of the United 
States. 

I have had men watching you for a long time and I am convinced that you have 
used the funds of the bank to speculate in the breadstuffs of the country. When 
you won, you divided the profits amongst you, and when you lost, you charged it 
to the Bank. ... You are a den of vipers and thieves."

— Andrew Jackson in 1834 on closing the Second Bank of the United States.


Stuart LaForge 


"There is nothing wrong with America that faith, love of freedom, intelligence, 
and energy of her citizens cannot cure."- Dwight D. Eisenhower