(08-11-2023, 08:25 AM)NYC4jags Wrote:

(08-11-2023, 08:14 AM)Lucky2Last Wrote: Those are not six individual points. Those are six interconnected points. Each one amplifies the other. Any of them, by themselves, do not necessarily undermine our freedom. On the one point, you said "it's always been like that." On the next, you said, "It was always going to be like that." Well, if you take them together instead of individually, you should be able to understand my broader argument. The changes to NAFTA took National corporations and made them global, which changed their goals, which changed how they used the powers of our federal government, which changed the way our tax dollars work for us. How much of our money goes overseas? Not only that, there is an important point I forgot to mention. 

Consolidation of Power: The digital age catapulted tech giants like Google, Facebook, and Amazon into overwhelming dominance, reshaping our roles as both consumers and products. This completely changed the way businesses gathered information and increased their ability to actualize profits. Following the 1996 Telecommunications Act, we witnessed a fusion in media industries and a surge in banking sector power, particularly after the 2008 crisis. All this resulted in mega-corporations that are able to enact their vision for the world at an unprecedented level.

Collectively, they are taking the toll on American liberty and opportunity in an unprecedented way. The shifting landscape post-NAFTA led to increased outsourcing, with businesses prioritizing international profits over domestic prosperity. This period also marked the rise of titans like Microsoft, Walmart, and Disney, who dwarfed their competition in a winner-takes-all market. Coupled with the decline of independent journalism and the rise of corporate media, the narrative surrounding public issues became increasingly homogenized. All the while, as stock markets soared, wage stagnation persisted for many Americans, further widening socio-economic disparities.

Global businesses have captured American government and make policies that do not favor Americans. They pick our politicians, amplify and suppress desire messaging, and they make policy that favors their ambitions. We have no say in what they do, and people who get a voice large enough can have that voice completely removed from the public sphere. This all results in less actual opportunity for the average American to generate wealth or compete in a fair arena.

I'm glad you don't feel it. That's a bit of an arrogant defense, don't you think?

I'm not defending anything. 
I don't need to. 
Not sure what you are getting at there. 
What is it you think I am defending exactly?

That was a response to this line in your previous post: I feel I'm just as free as I was under those presidencies I've listed.

I apologize if that was more of a throw away comment, but it came across as a defense of the status quo. I know you acknowledged some of what I posted, and I appreciate that, but that line you uttered is the crux of what I've been getting at lately. I believe the moderates are too comfortable to stand up to the real abuse of power that is happening in our government. I feel like they keep saying everything is fine while companies continue to consolidate their power, refine their messaging, and steal wealth and political capital from the American people. 

The balance has skewed completely in favor of mega-corporations, resulting in less opportunity (which is the heart of independence). While I agree that many people are still comfortable, I don't believe this will be sustainable. Something will break, and it will disproportionately affect the poor and middle class. I think you can already see signs of it cracking.

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