MY COMMENT 4/17/2011 7:25 PM:
@OCINC: On the contrary, the founders would have not interfered with business nearly to the extent we have today, because they wisely realized that it is business doing well, producing goods and services, satisfying a demand, and therefore hiring people which drives the economy.
The Federal Reserve is neither federal nor a reserve; rather, it is a private bank to which, unconstitutionally, was delegated the Congressional task of issuing currency- this it does by loaning the US its money and charging the government (read: TAXPAYERS) interest on every penny. The IRS is, likewise, an illegal entity, being the major logistical arm of the Federal Reserve Bank, collecting an unconstitutional tax. The purpose and scope of the Treasury Dept of the executive branch is debatable, but the fact that it is inept in the extreme is not.
What you speak of concerning the corruption which exists in big corporations is real and is dangerous; this is called "corporatism" (as opposed to capitalism). Corporatism is when large companies use their money for political purposes, usually at the expense of the taxpaying citizenry, and always regardless of the legal and ethical issues. Sometimes this corporatism originates within the company- Enron being one example of how corporatism allowed it to escape the usual scrutiny which may have prevented its collapse- and sometimes from within the government- banks being coerced by federal law to issue mortgages to people who had not the means to pay them back, resulting in multiple bank failures and the giant economic mess we are in today.
Nevertheless, government too big for its britches + greedy corporations = the great recession of 2008-2009, 2010, 2011, ad nauseum.
What concerns me most about your comment, @OCINC, is your twice-used phrase, "fiscal stewards and loyal to the cause." To what "cause" are you referring? And how do you elevate businesses to the level of "stewardship," denying the citizen of his responsibility?
We do not place our trust in any entity except ourselves and our God if we believe in one. The tenor of your phraseology suggests that businesses are supposed to be the benefactors of our society and can only do so with government oversight. Sorry, @OCINC, that experiment has been tried and has failed time and time again. Sadly, the farther down that path our country goes, the less economic growth, prosperity and freedom we will have.
We the people, according to the design enscribed by our founders, are supposed to enjoy such liberty which does not deny another entity his liberty and which does not exact a cost on another entity without recompense. To protect these inalienable rights, we elect representatives to govern within that limited scope.
My, how far we have fallen.
