It All Started with Ruth Buzzi: A Profound Observation from a Funny Lady

It All Started with Ruth Buzzi. I'm not sure how many readers remember who Ruth Buzzi is, but I remember her from the classic sketch comedy show from the 70's called "Laugh In." She was always a funny character actress and I can remember vividly many of the funny characters she played on the show. One day last year I saw her on Twitter and started following her. She actually posts some really funny stuff here and there and I've been known to retweet some of them to pass the laughs on, but a few days ago she got a little political, and I started to like her even more:

"If we stop corporate money from attaching strings to elected officials, we might have government "by the people" instead of this puppet show."

"What a profound notion, and from a funny lady, no less," I thought to myself. Instead of just retweeting her post, I replied to her directly with a "Yep, that's the only answer," and I truly believe that. I had been wanting to tackle the issue of the Occupy Wall Street protests for awhile now, and this was the kicker that got me started. A few days ago, I penned a piece which, to me laid out the most basic tenet of the movement: that the folks protesting are practicing democracy at its very core and that's something we should all admire, whether we agree with them or not.

I mentioned in that piece that the answers to our problems were simple, yet difficult to attain. I think that Ms. Buzz hit the nail on the head with the ultimate solution to many of our problems. It is the simplest of solutions, but unfortunately I don't believe it will ever happen. As one who pays attention to politics and society as a whole, it is plainly evident to me that the base root of all this mess is money, namely money in the form of the huge sums of campaign contributions that flow from the well to do and corporate interests to those in our political system. That money buys a lot of influence over the way things are run in this country (and the rest of the world), and that influence almost never goes for the benefit of "we the people."

Money, unfortunately, is the one thing that humankind seems to covet the most. For a great number of us, money sustains our lives, providing us with food and shelter and all of the other necessities of life. For others, money works to make more money and enables people to afford luxuries that many never get to experience. Still for more, money buys influence, winning the attention of those with the ability to return favors to the haves, resulting in the unfair conditions that permeate society. The ones with this kind of money are not individuals, but investor-owned conglomerations of people who place their bottom line above all else.

Corporations, of course, are not completely the ruthless evildoers that many think they are. No, they provide vital products and services that we all need to live our lives. However, anyone can see how they use their influence over the powers that be to our detriment. Sometimes it's blatant and other times it's more subtle, and all of it is for the sake of driving up the price of stock, the bottom line. All of it is made possible through both actions and inactions of our government, which brings us back to Ruth Buzzi's quote:

"If we stop corporate money from attaching strings to elected officials, we might have government "by the people" instead of this puppet show."

That is indeed the simplest of answers. The issue of campaign contributions has been a hot one for many years, and no one has ever been able to correct it the way it should be corrected: by eliminating campaign contributions altogether. The only real way to have a true democracy, where government is dictated "by the people," is to take away outside monies from going to politicians running for an elected office.

When elections are held using public monies, everyone is on equal playing ground, from the candidates themselves to the individuals and corporations who elect them. Far more time would be spent governing rather than holding fundraisers to raise monies for the campaign. Wouldn't that be a good thing? Removing the attached 'strings' would reap many benefits for all of us. Maybe, just maybe then, we'll find a way to right our terribly sinking ship. Who knew that a comedienne could be so profound?

Further Reading:
http://news.firedoglake.com/2011/10/24/occupy-wall-street-succeeding-in-exploding-american-myths/

http://www.thenassauguardian.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=14527:campaign-finance-reform&catid=48:editorial&Itemid=87

And for some good chuckles, you can follow Ruth Buzzi's Twitter page here.