A LIBERAL VIEW OF THINGS: What hath Reagan wrought?

From some of the lies, disinformation, demagoguery and pure scatological nonsense coming from the field of Republican presidential candidates, I am more convinced than ever the Reagan era began the slow but decided turn to the political right by our country.

What would Ronald Reagan have thought of a candidate who first plagiarized the arch-disinformation dispenser Rush Limbaugh, then repeated the lie of no jobs from the 2009 stimulus? I’d guess he would be utterly ashamed.

He also would be utterly ashamed at the nakedness of crony capitalism practiced by the leading candidate — if you believe polls these days. Reagan would be cringing at the mindless babbling of Rick Santorum, Michelle Bachmann, Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul, who have yet to identify a cogent reason for them becoming president.

Poor Jon Huntsman — he’s the only Republican making any sense, talking about real issues that need solutions and maintaining an above-the-slime personage along the way. Sadly, he’s running a distant third to the two stylized, self-made professional candidates. He’s the only candidate who seems to be made out of something sterner than sound bites and gotcha lines. He will, of course, never be nominated to represent this Republican Party next November.

Poor Ronnie: What have you wrought?

Well, for one thing you bought into Wall Street and Milton Friedman big time. Supply-side economics became the be all and end all to all things progressive — or so you thought. Too bad it doesn’t work in the real world. You were talked into hiring Donald Regan out from under his mantel of lordliness at Merrill-Lynch. You let the Republican Congress that rode your long coattails start deregulating business and banking. You attacked labor unions as the bad guys preventing your pals on Wall Street from taking it all. The foxes saw the gate to the hen house had opened and rushed in to carve up the great money pie known as the United States of America. While corporate/banking America was munching away on populace chicken, you were telling the chickens still living how bad government was.

Well, you now have your self-fulfilling prophecy coming true.

Our government is a problem — a big problem. It’s still there, but it has become a lead weight on the psyche and confidence of the American people. This government has abandoned the people as it never did before. By allowing corporations to drive the election process — as they have for the decades since you left office — the candidate quality has precipitously declined. We are presented with professional politicians instead of statesmen and women. Their only purpose is to get elected and re-elected to stay in power. This is evidenced most dramatically by the spate of Republicans running for president.

Furthermore, the professionals in both houses of Congress are a pitiful representation of the dignity of the American people. Their mindless squabbling over issues while completely ignoring the desires and needs of their representatives is the lowest of low points in our government’s history.

Additionally, trickle-down, get-government-out-of-the-way politics has created an enabled class of businessmen who whine about being taxed even after they’ve been allowed to hide money in foreign banks, are subsidized by taxpayer handouts so they can pay their stockholders and continue to hoard capital while thumbing their collective noses at the American worker. We have the richest in America screaming about the taxes they don’t pay even though when they do pay some, they pay less than the working men and women who sweat for their wealth.

Government is so frightened about suggesting things that we used to do for greatness — major highways, dams, moon trips, economic expansions, mass transport — that we do nothing to define ourselves while cutting valuable infrastructure like educating our children.

The short-term profit mentality has one major problem. When people have no money to consume because their jobs left the country with no replacement job, how do capitalists expect to obtain more capital? How do industrialists expect to make and sell more products when the marketplace is barren? How do families support themselves when they can’t afford food and health care?

What do we do now, Ronnie?

Turner is a retired teacher and industrial engineer who lives near Marble Falls. He is an independent columnist, not a staff member, and his views do not necessarily reflect those of The Tribune or its parent company. "The Voter’s Guide to National Salvation" is a newly published e-book from Turner. You can find it at www.barnesandnoble.com/ebooks. He can be reached by email at vtgolf@zeecon.com.