"There is only ONE power."

[Parisle]

--- A very wise old corporate exec said those words to me about twenty years ago. At that time, as now, we were talking about the enormous amounts being spent on political campaigns, lobbying and other forms of political bribery. I had just written a magazine article about that year's budget shortfall, and I was probably babbling about some esoteric minutia of political motives, party differentials, etc,... and the old guy simply held up his finger to signal me to be quiet,... and he said, "There is only one power. It is the power to SPEND."

--- He then went on to elaborate, explaining that, in his view at least, the political process constituted an ongoing struggle to determine who gets to spend the US federal budget,.. inarguably the largest chunk of change on earth. He made the analogy that running the federal government was like driving a truck that had money perpetually falling out of the back,... and, depending on which party was in charge at the time, that "leadership" decided which neighborhoods they would drive through. The republicans simply drive through the rich neighborhoods, and the democrats try to "spread it around" a little more. (his words)

--- It made sense then, and it still makes sense,... at least, it does to me. Is money, in fact, the "root of all evil?" Yes,... and in our society, it is the root of nearly everything else, as well. In our society, "business" is like "the force" in the Star Wars flicks..... it is always present, and it always has a dark side. Launch an optimistic urban renewal program or a housing redevelopment project,... and within hours, there will be contractors and financiers who have figured out the rules better than the legislators, themselves, and who will be gouging and defrauding and manipulating their way to a federally-furnished fortune. Even the Greens and other enviromentalists,.. if they were to look deeply enough, would probably find plenty of examples of exploitative (but profitable) behavior. And we already KNOW that we need not mention Christian efforts of charity, consolation and assistance,... like when there's a HURRICANE, right?

--- The "power to spend" is what we need to corral, and then manage far better than we've been doing thus far.