We have all become inundated with a daily dose of how unfair the world is to all of us. Thanks to the media in general, and the partisan public relations engines of both parties, it seems we have nothing to worry about regarding our future, other than getting what we want by taking what others have. Or for a select few – and you know who you are – having others take what we have worked so hard to earn.
Oh yeah, some of you didn’t really earn it did you? You got it from your parents, didn’t you? And of course your parents didn’t really earn it either, they took it from the masses. They had the audacity many years, or generations ago, to start a business and be successful. And of course they were successful because people, mostly middle-class people no doubt – the robber barons always sell their insidious goods to the middle class don’t they?
Yes they made their widgets and sold them to the people. And at first it all went well and everyone was happy. The businessmen (robber-barons) made the things we want in the U.S. and we paid them for them and then IT happened…
We found out just how much money you were making, even though each of us only paid a small amount – and at the time that small amount seemed ok. But you committed a heinous crime. You got successful. Not just successful – too successful. You made too much money and you moved up town… How could you?
Then as we complained to our congress people about how you were simply robbing us all, they stepped in and enacted, rules, and laws and taxes to make it fair. So we could get some of our money back in our pockets by redistribution.
And then you made it worse! As your profits went down you didn’t hire as much, in fact you laid off some of us. And then when we bought less because some were out of work you raised prices. Then we could not afford to buy your products as often and your sales dropped and you laid off some of us people.
The Chinese saw your success and your rising costs and they started to build the same product you did. We bought theirs because it was cheaper, and also to teach you a lesson. Soon, you on your own decided if you didn’t find cheaper workers you would be out of business. So you moved your factory to Mexico, or Singapore or China. How could you?
So, we asked our congress-people to fix this again, and they slapped on import duties. Yea, that will show them – and you… But, you both just raised the retail price and we ended up paying more for the same thing. Yea, our wages were not going up as fast as the prices but we had some tricks up our sleeves yet.
Since you and the other businessmen (robber barons) were now hiring cheaper and cheaper workers, we formed unions and made you pay us more and give us more stuff just to work for you. If you didn’t unionize, we got congress to increase the minimum wage and legislate some of the great free things you need to give us just cause we work for you – again we showed you. Now again, you had to pay us what we wanted if you hired any of us. Sure, you could no longer sell much of your product to the rest of the world cause it was too expensive and the quality was no longer any good because we don’t really have to meet any standards for you to pay us, but you were sharing your prosperity with us weren’t you? It’s only fair!
Of course, you again raised your prices to cover these new costs and you complained that you were no longer competitive and foreign products were taking the market and your company could not export anything either because of price and quality. Look, when we saw that what you said was true we stood up to help didn’t we? We are not uncaring after all! We came to your rescue and we asked congress to give you some tax breaks and subsidize our purchase of your products.
I know what you’re going to say! Sure, all of our taxes went up to pay for the cost of the programs to give the tax breaks and subsidies – but look even you understand the money has to come from somewhere. And rightly so, most of it came our of your share. That’s why you raised your prices again isn’t it? When will you learn, Mr. Robber Baron, that you can’t fool us! Yea, you say you’re not making any money, but we don’t believe you! You live uptown. You made a lot of money. We see your cars, your yachts, your corporate jets… So what if we are only paying a few cents profit for your product when we buy it, you sell a lot of it to us don’t you. Look you owe us! Without us you would not exist. What do you take us for, common workers? We don’t do common labor – don’t you get it! We are Americans, not some third-worlders. We don’t work cheap buddy. It’s about time you figured that out. And don’t try to hire those illegal immigrants either. We won’t let you exploit them like you used to exploit us!
So you better get a clue. It is not important if you can produce a product cheap enough so we can afford to buy it. We don’t need your product. We can buy the one from India, or Sulawesi. America is the import master of the world don’t you see? Why do you think we have such a huge trade deficit – we have bought over $11 trillion more in goods than we sold since 1972 – only American’s can do something like that bub!
You know we don’t need your kind in America – I mean you manufacturers, and oil producers, and steel companies, and commercial fishers, and lumber companies, farmers, and miners, and others like you. You are not nice to the environment, you harm animals, you exploit workers, you make noise, and you don’t create the kind of jobs we deserve. We went to college you know. We deserve high paying non-labor jobs anyway. We buy all that stuff from other countries anyway. Let their people not go to college and do that hard messy and dangerous work.
You know, it doesn’t matter anyway. When we want more, we will just increase regulations, increase taxes – on you, and get our legislators to increase what the government owes us, and what you have to pay for, or give to us – that is if If we debase ourselves enough to actually work for you. Yea sure, you can try to increase the prices but you know what we will do about that – now don’t you?
Quoth the Raven, the WEB – You’re Secure
How does the internet look in Edgar Allen Poe’s The Raven’s eyes?
Thomas@loker.com January 17, 2023
