Pearls of Wisdom

"When you see that in order to produce, you need to obtain permission from men who produce nothing; when you see that money is flowing to those who deal not in goods, but in favors; when you see that men get rich more easily by graft than by work, and your laws no longer protect you against them, but protect them against you, you may know that your society is doomed. "  Ayn Rand

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If one were to evaluate the individuals that supposedly represent us locally and nationally, we have a right to be disappointed. The greed, the promiscuity and the lack of integrity is appalling on all levels. In the New York Times on Saturday, May 19, 2012, an article stated that Senator Harold Brooks of Kentucky, head of the Senate Appropriations Committee, negotiated a contract to purchase drip pans for Navy helicopters for $17,000 each. Of course, the factory happens to be located in his district in Kentucky. 

One of the competitors bid on the contract, apparently with pans that sell for $2,500. Even assuming the quality to be slightly less, the price differential is exorbitant. The problem is not that Senator Brooks did something unethical, but rather that none of us are even remotely surprised. 

John Corzine was elected governor of New Jersey in 2005. The news media touted him as a financial genius, former CEO at Goldman Sachs, one of the top brokerage firms in the world. He was going to fix all the financial ills in the State of New Jersey and put us on solid economic footing.  

He did manage to increase the sales tax from 6% to 7% during his term, what little good that did for the state. Four years later, in 2010, we were still looking for answers. What went wrong?  How could Corzine have failed us? (Anyone remember Paula Katz, President of Local 1034, who had an affair with Corzine – large payoff involved?)

Now we know the real truth! MF Global is the laughing stock of the financial world. They are on the front page of the New York Times Business Section three times a week. John Corzine, CEO of MF Global, had no idea what was going on when his firm paid off financial shortfalls with client funds! Please, spare me!

A Corzine spokesperson defended him, saying, “Corzine never gave any instruction to misuse customer funds and never intended anyone at MF Global to misuse customer funds.” 

I can’t speak for everyone else, but I totally believe that!!! Duh!

Let’s not forget our charismatic presidential candidate, John Edwards. Another stellar example of marital fidelity, Edwards simply fathered a baby with his mistress, Rielle Hunter, while his wife was suffering from terminal cancer. And let’s not forget that Edwards convinced one of his aides, Andrew Young, to take the fall, declaring the baby was his.  

Edwards was recently indicted on charges by the prosecution that he had used campaign funds exceeding $1 million to hide his mistress and their child from the public and his wife, Elizabeth. Edwards' trial was recently declared a mistrial, with the jury unable to reach a verdict on five out of six counts. Finally, Elizabeth Edwards has passed away at 61 years of age from her disease, while John is free and able to pursue his lifestyle of obscenity and betrayal.

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November elections are almost upon us. We can all just continue to put our heads in the sand and vote Democratic or Republican and forget about the candidates and what they represent. Or we can do something radical! We can actually do our due diligence and educate ourselves on the candidates and make an effort to do better, to elect people to public office who are working for us, not for themselves.

If we can’t do it for a sense of moral indignation, let us at least make the effort for our children, who deserve a better future than our government is providing.