So why can't we somehow make lobbying illegal?

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Defeating market theocrats since 2001.

Lobbying is having many problems but it is false to assume that all lobbying is bad. I support having laws that makes it harder to bribe politicians and make lobbying more open, buy lobbiests are needed.

I would make it illegal for lobbiests to bring out politicians to any dinner and pay for it, as well as making it harder for lobbiests to hide the funds that they bundle from certain groups.

When it comes to many issues and an organization, such as a veteran, enviormental or military industrial, has a goal then the politicians need people to tell them about the topic and give them reasons to take a certain view.

Normally there is problems with companies hiring lobbyists to try and get something in the government for their favor, but many times it is just a group of people in an organization that want to try and pursuade politicians in Washington to take some action on something.

It is also important that politicians are aware of the needs of companies, even if the problem is normally that they are too in touch with buissines needs. There is a problem with the rules around lobbiests, not the actualy practice itself.

And proud of it! There's plenty of investment forums out there.

Theres an old story about two families that lived next door to each other.

One of the Families is rich and the other family is poor.

The poor family has parties all the time and people are coming over night and day
and the family doesn't worry becuase they don't have anything worth stealing and
they really enjoy the company.

The rich family on the other hand almost never has anyone over becuase they are worried about their nice stuff being stolen. So they sit around the house quietly playing with their stuff but all the noise from the neighbors really starts to bother them. They talk for weeks trying to figure out how to quiet down the neighbors when the father finally comes up with an idea.

The Next day the Father gets a large brick of Gold and throws it over the fence into the neighbors yard.

From that day forward there were no more parties next door.

Heres another one.

A young man is sitting on a beautiful beach fishing when
a older man in a suit comes up and says.

You know if you caught twice as many fish you could sell them and make some money.

The young man say. Cool and then what?

So the older man says you take that money and buy better fishing gear and catch more fish and make more money.

The young man says, Cool then what?

The older man says well then you can take the money and buy a fishing boat and catch more fish and make more money.

The younger man says cool then what?

The older man says with that money you can buy more fishing boats and catch more fish and make more money.

the young man says cool then what?

the older man says then you can build a building downtown and buy more boats and catch more fish and make more money.

The young man says cool then what?

The older man says well then you can retire to a beautiful beach and go fishing.

There is a saying, "If you cannot beat them,....join them."

Make a list of your wants, and send someone from your group to Washington to bend ears.

Purple Beverage Co Inc (PPBV)

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One Tin Soldier Walked Away...............


Vote like your life and your families life depends on it - because it does.

Vote like you want peace & prosparity for America - because the right wants more wars, more casualities, more VA hospitals.

Vote like you want a secured border from terrorists, illegal aliens, drugs, and gun runners - because the right offerred you a few miles of wire fence.

Simple concept here: if someone is wining, dining and bribing a legislator, that lobbyist gets arrested and that legislator faces ethics violation and impeachment.

Here is a case in point. A conservative Republican visits the North Mariana Islands in 2004. He was tipped off that clothes were being made under the "made in the USA" tag in sweatshops utilizing forced child labor there. He sponsored a bill that passed by a large majority in the Senate. Then the bill went on to the House of Representatives and Tom Delay. Then Jack Abramoff shows up after being hired by the sweatshop owners. He wines and dines and bribes Bush Republicans to NOT pass this legislation. The Bill did not pass, despite the fact that Tom (sociopath that he was) said he was a Christian, and for the right price, he turned his back on children being held in prison camps to work 6/7 days a week at below minimum wage under armed guard.

John Doolittle of my Congressional District said that he didn't see any sweatshops when he was wined, dined and bribed by Jack Abramoff, but that was because he was at a luxury hotel on the golf course or on a special snorkle diving cruise.

I see no compelling reason why these types of lobbyists don't get busted down to the bone and sent to prison and all bribed legislators get impeached for corruption.

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Very well put Michael.

Government of, by, and for the corporations is the definition of fascism.

Nice to know, good article, Michael.

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"Moreover, I am cognizant of the interrelatedness of all communities and states...Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. Never again can we afford to live with the narrow, provincial "outside agitator" idea. Anyone who lives inside the United States can never be considered an outsider anywhere within its bounds."



~Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.