Bill Ward asked, “Where did we go wrong?” (“Preserve freedom, capitalism,” Our Readers’ Views, July 26). I can answer that. We went wrong when the bounty of increased production of goods and services shifted from the producers of the profit (labor) to the owners (CEOs and shareholders). Labor creates wealth, but has been denied a sufficient share of that bounty since the 1980s.
But the bigger issue is, what is the purpose of government? Big government is not an independent organization. We are government: we, the people. That is why the many attempts at voter suppression are so alarming — the participation and votes of every eligible person are fundamental to the functioning of our republic. Organizations such as the American Legislative Exchange Council write legislation, not Congress, specifically with language favorable to corporations, leaving us with an unsustainable inequality at every level of our lives.
Achieving “a more perfect union” is impossible as long as the reins of power are held in the hands of the richest few who act for their own narrow self-interest instead of the good of the people. Give me good old FDR socialism over what passes for American oligarchical capitalism today.