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writing for godot

Lawyers & Politicians and Why We Can't Trust Either

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Written by John Griffin Miller   
Thursday, 06 June 2013 02:40
A while back I had a problem at work. I was asked to solve something that had a legal aspect to it. We had our very expensive lawyer in the office, so I asked him if I could meet briefly and ask a question.

I explained the problem to him in some detail, talking fast as he was a $300 or $400 an hour attorney. He was very bright and seemed understand very quickly. He followed everything I said and immediately explained it back to me better than I did to him. “We’re good to go,” he said matter-of-factly. I questioned if we were in a good spot? Are these good grounds to be standing on? He said of course that would work just fine and he would be happy arguing it this way.

I was young and dumb (as opposed to being older and dumb) and I wondered if perhaps this wasn't the best way to go. So I asked him maybe we could do the opposite? Perhaps that might be a different way to proceed? He looked at me with a smile and said, “Yeah we could argue that way too, no problem.”

It was then that I realized that he wasn't really in the business of keeping us out of trouble--he was in the business of solving our problems. The more problems we had, the more money we had to pay him to solve them! We were chatting once later and he told me that what he really wanted was a client who somebody else really, really hated. We ended up being one of those clients and we paid him a ton of money.

I think I knew from that point that lawyers and doctors really are just kind of mechanics: they just take your problem and figure out how to fix it. Kind of like your auto mechanic: Where is the buzz, where is the rattle and how can I fix it? (Only your mechanic doesn’t charge anywhere near what your doctor or lawyer charges!)

So, almost half, 42%, of Congress this year are lawyers (another 5% are doctors). These are guys, by and large, who make their living figuring out how to get you out of trouble. They’re really not interested in how to keep you from getting into trouble; mostly they’re trained to be interested in how much they can charge to get you out of the mess you made for yourself. And you have to wonder whether these guys are really thinking about how to make things better or just: what is the problem and how can I fix it for the client and how much can I charge.

Rather than campaign on a particular philosophy or on how to make America better place to live for the citizens of the country, most of these guys just seem to be interested in getting themselves elected and reelected and reelected. (And at a higher-rate than the Soviet Politburo did, by the way.) Even the good ones, who might have had a conscience once upon a time, once they get into office, their attitude turns to how can I stay in office? How can I make sure I don't do anything out of the ordinary or offensive that would get me tossed out of this place? Because here is where the real power is and where the path to the real money is.

And of course they've all figured out, that the only way to get elected and reelected is to raise a lot of money for the next campaign. And where they get this money? They get it from rich people and corporations, because they’re the only ones that have money and the willingness to spend it on political campaigns. And just like any other lawyer (or doctor, but mostly lawyers) they are trained to know that the biggest clients, the richest clients are the ones that they can really charge a lot.

They know where their bread is buttered. It’s buttered with the 1%.

So when their phone rings and it's the guy who gave them hundreds of thousands of dollars to get reelected and the other line has a constituent who wants them to work toward the “common good,” who are they going to talk to? (Bishop E.W. Jackson, the Tea Party/Republican nominee to be the next Lieutenant Governor of Virginia, speaks openly for many of the right wing that he doesn’t see a role for the federal government in promoting the general welfare of the United States. You know, like it says in their cherished Constitution. Twice.)

But more importantly, since besides war (which they screw up regularly), most of what Congress does is economics, you have to wonder if there is anybody there who are economists, or even understand that that is where the problems are and that’s how they can make the American people’s lives easier? As Bill Clinton was reminded regularly “It’s the economy, stupid.”

Think about who you might expect is going to solve America’s problems, on a list of one to 10. Is your congressperson even on the list? Why not? Because these are guys who are working for the people who will get them reelected. They’re not the guys were working to make a common person’s life better or solve big issues. Anyone who got elected from the current system (whether they’re a lawyer or not, whether they’re a Democrat or Republican) has to understand that their bread is buttered on the side of the rich and elite. So anyone who gets elected in the current system is not the least bit interested in actually solving any of our problems, they’re interested in helping out their patrons.

And that’s the one percent. Let’s elect people who will represent us, and say no to contributions from corporations, lobbyists and the oligarchy.
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