After last week’s chat about the corporate coup against the People, some of you may be a bit disheartened. Many may be wondering how we fix this. How do we prevent political elites from surrendering our nation? How do we keep our nation out of the hands of their corporate overlords?

I prepared you for the answer in episode six “Bloodless Revolution”. The answer is a grind. Unfortunately, that is the only way we get back our nation OF the People and FOR the People. 

Step 1: reclaim the presidency for the People.

Before we can even begin to discuss step two, we need to face certain facts and realizations.

First, we need to understand that corporate elites are not looking out for our best interests. We need to realize that corporate interests DO NOT align with the People’s interests… ever.

Corporations have one goal: profit. If that means predatory prices on their goods and services, so be it. If that means laying off thousands of workers, so be it. If that means destroying an American community to move their operation so they can pay slave wages, so be it. Corporations do not care about communities, workers, or even the nation they call home. Corporations only care about the almighty profit . 

The only time corporations have an appearance of caring, is when it aligns with making profit. 

Let’s use climate change as an example. A corporation makes changes to be more 'climate-friendly'. Great! We all applaud that corporation's new 'environmentally friendly’ direction. But let’s talk about what is going on behind the scenes. 

For years, their government affairs team has paid millions for access to legislators. This relationship provides them with inside information months before the public. Let’s say that the state is going to pass a law requiring a specific reduction in carbon emissions. The government affairs team learns of this law early, and informs the board of directors. 
The board now knows that making the change is unavoidable in the long term. They know it will cost them money, but the law is inevitable. They decide to make the change early to earn the company goodwill from the community. The loss of profit is inevitable, but they hope the goodwill earned will offset it. 

They put together a media campaign to announce their new 'climate-friendly' direction. The People praise said company for its commitment to the climate. This boosts sales and offsets much of their lost profits. The board pops champaign and smokes cigars celebrating the gullibility of the community.

Why? Because we bought into the corporate propaganda. 

Want more than a hypothetical?

Let’s look at a real-world scenario that happened in 1986. Monsanto was an agrochemical company (later acquired by Bayer). They are most famous for Roundup herbicide. A lobbyist from Monsanto paid a visit to then-Vice President George H.W. Bush. What was the subject of this visit? They discussed genetically-modified food products and the need for preemptive regulation. These products are better known as GMOs today. In 1986, this industry was still eight years from its first products hitting shelves. 

Sounds good, right? A company was trying to take responsibility for the products they intend to sell. 

Well, just wait…

Monsanto was ensuring that they had a guiding hand in the regulation process. And guide it they did. 

The policies later enacted under now-President Bush greatly benefited Monsanto. They severely limited the Federal Drug Administration's ability to regulate GMOs. This ensured manufacturers (and not the government) would determine the dangers of GMOs. Policies stated that testing would only occur when the company wanted it to. They ruled that labeling would be misleading. They concluded that consumers (the People) had no right to know their food contained GMOs.

Here are some of the more notorious aspects of this action. 

In 2000, the World Trade Organization held talks on genetically-modified foods. To represent us, the Clinton administration sent a lobbyist instead of a scientist.

Here’s a prime example of the revolving door of lobbyists to the government and back. In 1991, a corporate lawyer representing Monsanto went to work for the FDA. He was responsible for regulations that brought Monsanto products into the food supply.
In 1994, this lawyer left the FDA for the US Department of Agriculture. At the USDA, he helped write regulations eliminating labeling for said products. 

In 1996, with the Corporate Political Agenda strengthened, he pulled off the trifecta. He rejoined the corporate law firm he left five years earlier.  

In 1998, surprise, surprise. He joined Monsanto as their VP of Public Policy. 
That's all bad, but do you know the worst part? In 2009, the Obama administration welcomed him back to the FDA. He stayed there until 2016.

Still not convinced that corporations manipulate politics to protect their unethical practices? Or maybe you want to be more informed? Look up food libel laws.
Specifically, look up Texas Beef Group vs. Oprah Winfrey. When it's illegal to question the safety of corporate policies, are we living in a free nation?

This is what happens when money buys access to politicians. Corporations get to control and game the system. Instead of insider trading, we get insider regulating. 

Still need more proof that corporations don’t care about the People? Look no further than the record profits that the oil companies continue to rake in. Over the last year plus, the People suffered from high fuel prices while they made more and more profit.

Want more? Look at Twitter. Elon Musk’s mouth wrote a $44 billion check that Twitter wasn’t worth, and he was forced to follow through. The result, so far, is that thousands of employees lost their jobs, and the company is in disarray. Many of these employees were responsible for guarding against misinformation and hate speech. One might wonder if there were other motives. At the very least, we cannot ignore his connection to foreign and hostile nations. 

How about another example? In 1993, we welcomed the tragedy that is the North American Free Trade Agreement (or NAFTA). Corporate leaders lauded and pushed this agreement through the government. NAFTA has cost American jobs, increased our trade deficit, and decreased wages.

NAFTA and our World Trade Organization membership have cost millions of jobs. The Bureau of Labor and Statistics notes a loss of nearly 4.5 million manufacturing jobs alone. This is before including other hard-hit industries, like service industries. Manufacturing workers saw their wages seriously decline. Plants moved out of the country and left them little choice but to accept jobs making less. Between 1993 and 2017, our trade deficit with Canada and Mexico rose from $10.5 billion to $158 billion. 
You might be thinking the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement fixes all that. As long as corruption and low wages pervade Mexico, the US will always be at a disadvantage. Agreements only work when all sides act in good faith. Corporations, on the other hand, will continue to reap even more profits. Bottom line is that we will continue to lose jobs and manufacturing.

As Ross Perot put it, we do and will continue to hear “a giant sucking sound of jobs being pulled out of the country.”

We must put corporations back in their place. We must pass laws, taxes, and regulations to protect working Americans. 

That brings me to the second realization we need to come to as a nation. Government activity and regulations are not bad things . This is propaganda fed to us by the corporate elites and their political cronies. Corporate crony President Ronald Reagan really did our nation a disservice.  He said, “…the nine most terrifying words in the English language are: I’m from the government, and I’m here to help.” The famous line comes from his 1986 propaganda tour.

This is propaganda straight from the Corporate Political Agenda playbook. Of course they want you to think the government is scary and inefficient . They want to convince us that government squanders tax money. The corporate and political elites are free to attack taxation and government programs. They get away with it because we ignore the inactions of political elites. We blame the government for inefficiency while politicians do nothing. They do nothing so they can claim the government is inefficient. It is a self-fulfilling prophecy . 

When they actually do something, it is to contribute to inefficiency. Political elites create costly roadblocks (both time and money) through laws and regulations. This is why getting new infrastructure built can take so long and be so expensive. 

The biggest con of these elites is the claim that privatization is the answer to all our problems. Let me make this clear: privatization is only the answer to the corporate elites’ problems. Are you still not convinced that corporations do not have the People's best interest in mind? Well, I'm not sure what else to say.

Privatization is a scam . When corporate and political elites attack the government, they are attacking the People. Corporate and political elites laud privatization. They say it will fix all our woes, but you must read between the lines. What they are actually saying is the People can't be trusted to govern themselves. They are saying that the People aren't smart enough to know to whom to delegate our power. They are saying we don't know how to choose representatives that serve our best interests. 

When they say “The government is bad,” they are actually saying “Rule By the People is bad.” They say this because it affects their bottom line. They are saying we can’t count on ourselves to make good decisions, so we need them to make them for us. 

They are saying only corporations can ensure our rights. We need them to ensure domestic Tranquility. We need them to promote the general Welfare. We need them to secure our blessings of liberty.

They are saying, “We'll only add one little caveat: ’as long as it makes us a profit .’ That's no big deal, right?”

Privatization is a Ponzi scheme. If we just turn over every aspect of our life to the corporate elites, they will make everything better. Instead, they take taxes and turn them into more profit while hanging the People out to dry. 

From the moment I started this podcast, I have emphasized that it is not the government that is the problem. It is the people we elect to lead that government. It is the parties that hold our government in an iron grip of corporate dominance.

Privatization is not the only scam designed to make us distrust the government. Corporate propaganda pervades every corner of our culture. The proof is the blame the government gets for things like inflation. 

I know many of you are not going to like it or believe me, but I’m going to say it anyway. Because facts aren’t meant to make you feel good. The government cannot directly control inflation. Period. Corporate and political elites want you to believe they can. They want you to believe that when prices rise it's the government’s fault. They want you to believe that government programs and raising wages cause inflation. But that’s not quite true.  

By this point, I hope that we all understand what inflation is. At its most basic, it is the rise in prices compared to the value of money. 

Inflation is caused by a few factors. 

First is the rise in demand versus a decrease in supply. More demand and less supply equals inflation. What corporations don’t want you to know about this is that they purposely keep supply low. They do this so they can increase prices. Take our current fuel supply. Oil companies increase prices, which increases profit. They also refuse to increase production. This creates an artificial supply deficit. This is good for the corporations but not for the People. The People suffer while oil companies rake in billions in profit.

The second cause of inflation is purely marketing or technology based. This one is probably the least concerning since it is usually only for luxury items. Say a company creates a new technology. That creates a new demand that will have limited supply. Or they create a marketing campaign for a product that creates FOMO in consumers. This allows said company to increase prices. 

Third is the Federal Reserve lowering interest rates. This makes borrowing money cheaper. This can create a supply issue on its own, which in turn creates inflation. 
Currently, the Federal Reserve is doing the opposite, trying to fight inflation. It can work, but it will be slow and it mainly hurts the People. It reduces wages, job opportunities, borrowing power, and can often lead to a recession.

That brings me to the final cause of inflation that I want to highlight. It is when there is too much money in circulation . Basically, the more money in circulation, the less money is worth, causing inflation. This is the cause that corporate and political elites want to focus on. The problem is that they get us to focus on the wrong aspect.
They want us to believe higher wages, government programs, and stipends  drive inflation. This just isn’t true. Let me explain why.

When working Americans receive stimulus from the government, they spend it. They don’t hoard it or put it in savings; they use it. Why? Because they need to. They need to pay bills. They need to buy groceries. They need to use it on healthcare. Sure, they might buy a luxury item, but it is still being spent. 

This 'free money' (as elites call it) immediately contributes to the economy. Working Americans spend the money because they must. This is not what creates inflation.
Here is what the elites decrying government programs don’t want you to know. Corporations and the wealthy are the cause of inflation. It is a fact that too much money in circulation causes inflation. But who has the biggest chunk of money in circulation? It isn’t working Americans, who are the biggest beneficiaries of government programs. 

I do agree with them on one thing. There is too much money in circulation. But it is not the stimulus received by working Americans that is causing the inflation. When you give a working American $1,000, they put it right back into the economy. It works for America. When you give someone like Jeff Bezos $1,000, he puts it in a bank account and it is lost to the American economy.

There is too much money out there, and we must reclaim it. But it is sitting in the bank accounts of corporations like Exxon Mobile and the wealthy like Elon Musk. It is increasing through greed . It is increasing by raising prices and making record profits at the expense of the People. 

Let’s take a look at Elon Musk’s wealth. Note that this is pre-Twitter purchase. According to Forbes in 2022, Musk’s net worth is $188 billion. This is cash, stocks, and other assets . That means that money is making him more money, so he never really has to drop below that net worth. Technically, it means his net worth will only grow. 
For ease of math, let’s look just at the $188 billion number. On average, wealthy men in the US live to be approximately 80 years old. Elon Musk is 51. So, to make the numbers easy, let’s say he lives another 30 years. 

The only way for that money to benefit the American economy is to spend it. To do that, he would need to spend more than $6 billion a year (or $17 million a day) for the next thirty years. That is without adding any more money, so it can’t be on investments or buying companies. (The dumpster fire that is currently Twitter could lead to the removal of a chunk of money though.) It would be tough for even the most financially reckless  to do that. 

To truly tame inflation, we must reclaim money hoarded by the wealthy. We must make that money work to benefit the American economy. Obscene amounts of hoarded money do nothing to help the economy. All it does is grow and make the wealthy wealthier. That makes inflation harder and harder to tame. If you want to keep inflation low, you must tax these pirate hoards  and make that money work for America. 

There are many ways to put that money to use. Here are some examples.

	Improve infrastructure to make travel and commutes cheaper and easier.
	Eliminate the cost of healthcare so there is more disposable income for entrepreneurship. 
	Increase wages so there is more disposable income for investment in retirement.
	Improve education and career training opportunities to ensure employees for necessary career fields.
	Lift the poor out of poverty to reduce the drain on social services.

That is how you improve the American economy and reduce inflation at the same time.

Another way is to provide Congress a mandate to regulate profits on the necessities for life. No, before you say it, this isn’t socialism. This is the government upholding the Values guaranteed to us in the Constitution.

You also might think that I am against people becoming rich. I am not. That is the epitome of the American Dream, after all. What I do have a problem with is wealth that people do nothing to earn. I have a problem with people who did nothing more than be born into a specific family to become wealthy. I have a problem with the wealthy who let their wealth stagnate. They let billions sit in bank accounts instead of improving our nation. They watch Americans suffer and think their hoarded billions are ethical. I have a problem with the accumulation of vast amounts of wealth that is nothing more than a status symbol.

This will be a controversial statement, but that money isn’t only theirs. They made that money because of the opportunity to do business in the United States. They made that money because the American People support their business. They made that money because our laws and regulations benefit free enterprise. 

It is the wealthy's responsibility to support the People that have made them wealthy. It is the obligation of corporations to ensure our nation is strong. Our nation has provided them opportunities to thrive. It is their duty to give back to the People, who they have taken advantage of to grow their wealth. 

Some of that may come from my Christian values, and I apologize if this offends you. In the book of Matthew, Jesus told us we must help those in need in order to inherit the Kingdom of heaven.

 “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me… whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”

When we let money become a symbol of power and status, we not only defy American values but the mandates of Heaven. It is our responsibility to ensure all Americans are provided for. Whether you consider yourself a Patriot or a Christian, and especially if you claim both, this is the way.

The last thing I want to talk about is the other side of this equation. I am a firm believer that the government (BY the People) should not be scary. But we must acknowledge that it is currently bloated and, in many ways, needs streamlining. 

This is largely by design. Corporate design, that is . How do you make outrageous profits off the government? That's easy; receiving bloated contracts, of course. How do you keep the government looking ineffectual? Raise a barrier of unnecessary or redundant  permits and inefficient red tape. This is the problem you get when moneyed interests determine who makes the laws and regulations in our nation. Laws and regulations are currently designed to enrich corporate wealth and disenfranchise the People. 

Corporate politicians’ sole purpose is to make the government look ineffectual. They do this so we will support a corporate coup of our government based on inefficiency. They believe we are too stupid to realize what they are doing. They count on us not understanding or being too frustrated to try. They hope we ignore that our government is being hijacked by corporate interests.

They want us to believe that it is our government to blame and not their interference. Or more accurately, it is their guidance and legislative inaction.

Once we get corporations out of government, we must still take some time to streamline it. I am a gamer. I like to play video games of all types, but my favorites are live-service games. When I frequent forums for these games, one complaint rings out in all of them. Stop adding new content and fix the bugs . Unfortunately, the developers never listen. Fixing bugs doesn't make them money. This is exactly what we need to do for our government. We must fix the bugs.

I saw a very poignant post on Facebook recently. It was a picture of the Constitution and it said: “We don’t need to rewrite it; we need to reread it.” That is exactly the sentiment that I hope to elicit with my podcast. We need to take the time and review our bloated laws and government regulations. Then, we need to streamline them with the American values of the Constitution in mind. 

This would be one of the many benefits an independent President can offer our nation. An independent President would not be beholden to partisan or corporate interests. They would be elected solely for the benefit of the People. An independent President, with a likeminded cabinet, can streamline the executive branch. He or she can encourage Congress to do the same for many laws that stand in the way of a government For the People. If they don't or they are unwilling, we would know who to replace. 

Wondering how we get an independent President? I encourage you to revisit episode six 'Bloodless Revolution'.

I have no hidden agenda. My agenda is one of the People. The protection and sustainment of American Democracy is my only concern. Our nation is barreling towards a reckoning between moneyed elites and the People. 

The question is: 

Will we reclaim our power and stop the corporate coup? 

Or... 

Will the American experiment fail? Will the People return to servitude and serfdom? Will we devolve into corporate-dominated feudalism ? 

If you don’t think we are close to this now, then you aren’t paying attention.
It is up to us whether the American experiment continues. It is up to us to take back the power our Founders invested in the People. 

I know it seems insurmountable. I know it is a grind, but we the People are the only ones standing between freedom and corporate slavery . When you look at your children or children’s children, will you be able to say you did all that you could? 

We must never forget. We the People are the Power.