Checks And Balances
The founders of America were very intelligent, well educated men. They had a great deal of experience in real life, and they certainly were not just a band of idealistic, rabble rousing men with an unrealistic understanding of human nature.
They understood that the human species often tended to be both power-mad and greedy. Their foundation on reality and experience, combined with their intellectual knowledge and good understanding of history meant that the United States was set up with the concept called Separation of Powers.
In America the federal government is divided into three branches of government called the executive, the legislature, and the judiciary. Each branch of government has separate and independent powers and areas of responsibility which are broadly defined in the constitution.
This concept was first developed in ancient Greece and later was used in the Roman Republic. In the 1700’s it was described further by the French political philosopher Baron de Montesquieu.
Separation of powers in the American form of government is intended to protect liberty and democracy, and avoid tyranny.
This is different than in a Parliamentary democracy which does not have this same distinct separation of powers. In a parliamentary democracy (such as is used in England) the executive, who is often called the prime minister and the Cabinet, which is frequently called the government, are drawn from the legislature, which is called a parliament. Parliamentary democracies operate under the principle of responsible government. The legislative and executive branches of the government are connected in parliamentary systems, but in most countries there is an independent judiciary.
By the late 1920’s and early 1930’s it had become apparent in America that these three branches of government were inadequate to stand up to and prevent the enormously wealthy private sector from gross abuses. The Robber Barons came to be seen as a direct threat to liberty and democracy. They certainly employed tyranny, indeed on a mass scale.
The abuses by the private sector resulted in the implementation of various laws and forms of regulation including those in the areas of the economy, banking, child labor, minimum wages, workplace safety, old age pensions, and by the 1960’s environmental laws which were intended to preserve wilderness areas and insure adequate quality of air to breathe and water to drink.
During the last 35 years the right wing and the Robber Barons have again asserted themselves. Many of the laws and regulations which were implemented to regulate and prevent abuse have been watered down to the point of ineffectiveness.
During the 1940’s Adolph Hitler in Germany first effectively used the media to significantly influence people’s ideas. These tactics became known as marketing. Since the 1960’s the right wing in America has also used these same types of distortion of reality. Rather than the American voters understanding that ceasing to properly regulate the wealthy private sector would have disastrous effects on their standard of living, the “spin doctors” of the Republicans convinced people that deregulation was actually a very healthy and positive concept.
In the year 2008 we now have a much better picture of where all of this “deregulation” has brought us.
Because of the similar right wing idea of “free trade” the large majority of good-paying American manufacturing jobs have been moved abroad. This manufacturing is now taking place in countries which have much weaker laws regarding child labor, minimum wages, and the protection of the environment.
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At the same time that the laws and regulations have been watered down, the President has gradually acquired more and more power compared to the other two branches of government. This weakening of checks and balances also has had the effect of favoring rich people at the expense of the middle class.
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The financial system and the banks in America are in serious danger of collapse, the U.S. Dollar has been devalued and is continuing to lose value. Other countries no longer view the Dollar as a reserve currency, or a safe place to put their money during hard times. One large corporation after another is watering down or even cancelling its private pension plan. Almost 50 million people in America do not have health insurance, and many others are underinsured and cannot afford to see a dentist or go to the doctor for preventative care.
De-Regulation is in fact a very negative concept. It may be good for the wealthy in the short term, but it has had terrible consequences for the middle and lower classes. And in the long term it is not even good for the super rich and the Robber Barons.
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