Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont posted this message on social media:
@BernieSanders •
One family, the right-wing Trump-aligned Ellisons, will soon control:
TikTok
CBS
CNN
HBO
Discovery Channel
BET
Cartoon Network
Comedy Central
DC Studios
Fandango
Miramax
MTV
Nickelodeon
Paramount
Pluto TV
Showtime
TBS
The CW
TNT
Warner Bros.
And more
This is oligarchy.
•

AMERICA HAS BEEN AN OLIGARCHY FOR YEARS — After researching government laws passed since Citizens United, Princeton University researcher Martin Gilens and Northwestern University researcher Benjamin Page documented that the U.S. is no longer a representative republic because the government does not represent the interests of the majority of the country’s citizens, but is instead ruled by the rich and powerful. The researchers analyzed 1,800 U.S. policies enacted over a period of two decades and compared the laws and regulations that were passed to those favored by average Americans to those favored by wealthy Americans and corporations, and here’s what the research revealed: “EVEN WHEN A MAJORITY OF CITIZENS DISAGREES WITH ECONOMIC ELITES OR WITH ORGANIZED SPECIAL INTERESTS, ORDINARY CITIZENS GENERALLY LOSE.”
So, America has been a functional oligarchy for many years — but we just didn’t notice because we are always so distracted by our personal interests and in meaningless distractions, such as will “our” football team win this weekend, or who’s going to come out on top at the end of March Madness. Same distraction tactic that the Roman emperors used by building coliseums in every town in the empire.
Then the Supreme Court hung a For Sale sign on government with the Court’s 2010 “Citizens United” ruling that opened the floodgates to corporate and billionaire money to openly buy elections. Only then did we notice that we have long been living in an oligarchy.
Today, America has the best government that money can buy, and that government is serving the interests of corporations and billionaires, not We the People. But, what the heck, it’s March Madness time, so who cares?
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This is outrageous!
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We desperately need to create a structure in society that will take the place of what was a free press. I am not sure any governmental structure will remove the corrupting influence of big money owning big media.
Perhaps all we need is some good old fashion trust busting
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Joe Biden had the common sense to appoint Lina Khan who fought tirelessly against the consolidation of large companies. Fewer companies in a given market lead to collusion, not competition, and it is harmful to consumers. Trump does not work for consumers. Consolidation allow big companies to get stronger so they can price fix goods and services. Trump’s administration will not intervene.
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