Mother always said, "If you are too stupid to see the flim flam you deserve what you get." Now you are getting it...

I do consider myself one of the more highly intellectually functioning members of society. As organizations get large (more than about a dozen people, I'd say) they become more interested in self-preservation than anything else. Charities keep more of the money donated to them, political organizations stoop to pandering, etc. I don't join organizations, so I don't know what the socialist organizations think.

Just look at yourself in the mirror and you will know.

What once composed the Great American MC got used to living well, thinking it was their entitlement to the Rancher in the Burbs, the big screen in the LR, the gas guzzling SUV in the driveway and two weeks in the Poconos for a vacation. Now that has all but disappeared and they are getting restless on the reservation as no duly elected official has restored their Greatness so they elected Trump to MAGA..The other half are still getting their welfare checks and food stamps so they don't care and will support anybody who keeps signing the checks. So long as they keep coming and don't bounce. If they stop those natives too will become restless and begin to revolt. The 1% are smirking while sipping their Pina Coladas at 30,000 ft on their private jets..why they are the masters of the universe the movers and shakers. Why don't you know "that 75% of all capital investment is located in CA, NY and MA and what we need to do is try to get more investment out into the fly over states" That is like saying lets give them some cake too. For someone who is so successful and thinking that they are so smart that is a very myopic and thusly out of touch with reality thing to say. There is no vision there at all.

If you want to start with America first, the American fatted calf consumer for the world is gasping for breathe as his MC job has gone away with globalization, he has NO Saving as is burdened with debt up to his eyeballs. While depending upon a tottering on the brink entitlement system for his golden years sustenance. The nation itself has subsumed the debt itself to keep the sytem functioning, in effect burning the candle at both ends with Sovereign debt and monetary debasement. Globally without the American consumer those other entities economies are being hard pressed to stay afloat with ever more debt. As the parties become ever more desperate to survive they become more clanish and reactionary in an effort to preserve what they still have. The result is Nationalistic fragmentation and with that fragmentation come the chaos of discord and the conflict of fighting over the scraps. Dog eats dog and may the best dog win.

Do not worry about the New World Order of Globalism taking over it is being smashed right before your eyes. The world is in the process of reverting to the mean of human history. The Socialists Great Enlightenment wasn't so enlightened after all, you haven't transcended anything especially with the new god of science and technology because that nasty, and brutish thing called human nature prevails. Stripe away that thin vail of civilization and you get Trump for your leader...

The socialists should have stopped admiring their preening self reflection in the mirror and spent more time reading history that was not spinning a self congratulatory interpretation. All those self help books on economics have not helped as they were written by the dysfunctional.

Hobbes was right.."mans life in the state of nature is nasty, brutish and short." It is only in the acceptance of those facts and being aware of your nature that temperance is possible. In that you have choices to make.

And so you accept the facts and build your vision upon them. To do otherwise is folly.
But to accept the conditions and bemoan the impossibility of improvement is not what makes us care for the weak and infirm.
It is not just the law that makes us care for one another. Why else would someone who finds a valuable possession try to return it to the rightful owner? Why would we mark the years passing of an intervention which perhaps saved the life of a person we have only met through this forum?
Some strive for power. Some strive for balance.

Best
Les

And others just continually demand attention. Thanks for your input.

The two are not mutually exclusive.

Some strive for balance and once achieved strive for power. Actually one has innate or vertical power if one has balance.

Most people will always be in the process of trying to achieve balance even if they have achieved power.

Balance is a great euphemism for intergrating the self. That said I long ago achieved balance and have an inner equilibrium even under extreme stress. That is not to say that I don't have existential struggles that are associated with life. But my problems are external and not internal.