The government has been unable to reign in hedge funds.
But the remaining reporters at the "Denver Post" just might.
For far too long we've revered money. And believed that those in possession of it know better. We've been sold this canard, that the rich are job creators, that if they triumph, so do we, that if we just unfetter them, release them from regulations, we'll all be lifted up.
Wrong.
This is the story of Trump, this is the story of the Republican Congress. How they've lost touch with the people.
Forget "Roseanne," forget the ignorant angry at immigrants and globalization. They've been left behind, unfortunately, they need to be propped up, but it's the intelligentsia who are going to remake this country.
Remember when that was the goal? To be educated and smart? Before college became a glorified trade school? Before Ivy Leaguers went to Wall Street and became beholden to the Benjamins?
So they shoot black people and the white people don't care. Some bleeding heart liberals do, but the truth is racism is rampant, despite what the Supreme Court said in its voting rights decision. As for a compassionate America... When scores of Muslims are killed in the Middle East, it barely gets any ink. Seems you've got to be white and Christian to matter.
But we've got cameras now, we can document and see, and what we view is not pretty.
So then the teachers in Virginia say no mas. They're entrusted with our foremost responsibility, educating the young, and they're treated like fast-food employees, viewed as unreliable unionists who must be quashed.
And then the same thing happens in Oklahoma, a red state if there ever was one.
And the teachers don't even agree with their union, they want more, they want a fair deal. Why should all the energy companies get a pass?
Why should they be subsidized by the government?
Think about that!
Meanwhile, the Kansas Supreme Court keeps saying not enough is spent on education in a state bankrupted by no tax supply side economics and then students, MERE CHILDREN!, are fed up with school shootings and capture the nation's attention and not only protest, but produce change.
This was not supposed to happen. The NRA was too powerful, they had politicians in their pockets.
But that's no match for the truth.
And now comes the story of the "Denver Post."
You're supposed to feel lucky you've got a job, you're not supposed to rock the boat. The whole damn country is about not rocking the boat. I'm not talking about the agitated on the internet, I'm talking about the working stiffs, trying to feed their families. Sure, you can be a greeter at Wal-Mart, while you subsist on welfare, but if you're a professional, you need to shut up, for fear of being squeezed out of the marketplace, especially if you're aged.
And now these reporters have had enough. The hedge fund owners have bled the enterprise dry, using the profits for other endeavors, including lining their own pockets and building buildings.
When you've got nothing, you've got nothing to lose.
But even if you've got something, and you see it slipping away, living in a game of musical chairs, people are now standing up for their truth.
We've been at the mercy of these mercenaries for far too long. They're billionaires, they should be revered like rock stars.
Only there are no more rock stars.
A rock star was someone who made it on their creativity who was all about credibility and truth and not selling out. If a musician makes it today, they're eager to make a deal, IT'S ALL ABOUT SELLING OUT! Which is why no one's listening to them, other than the nincompoops who don't know what time it is.
But the internet was supposed to save us.
Now the truth is these unregulated pricks in search of bucks have belittled our society. The press builds up Sheryl Sandberg as she destroys our country and our minds. But the woman educating your children is pissed upon, told to make do, get a second job.
Our values are screwed up.
Only they're not.
The truth is we know better, and we're finally saying it.
Sure, news is a challenged business. But we don't need extra layers of challenge added on. The truth is the "Denver Post" owners, as well as Tronc, are all about preserving their profit margins, double-digit ones, as not only reporters lose jobs, but the papers lose relevance. First they came for the classifieds, then they came for the full page ads, then they came for the news... The "Los Angeles Times" is a pamphlet, there's more nutrition in a box of Froot Loops!
But a billionaire bought the "Times."
And another billionaire bought the "Washington Post," which went from also-ran to leader. The WSJ is an also-ran and Fox does little reporting, only bloviating, they're both reacting to the NYT and WP. And we've got a President denigrating both.
But the NYT and WP are sticking to their guns. They can handle it, can you?
That's the story of today. Not about arguing with the other side, but standing up against injustice. When pushed to the wall, people react.
And change results.
This is a wake-up call, as big as the one in the sixties. But then the war was overseas, now the war is right here at home. There's been a cleaving of society. And despite the b.s., there are facts, and many people know them, and despite the government and the rich trying to lead with misdirection, telling us they know better, we're not taking it anymore. Because when something smells fishy, it is.
Not every enterprise has to scale like Silicon Valley.
Not every hardworking stiff needs to be discounted because they're not making beaucoup bucks.
It comes down to people. And fairness. And truth.
And the truth is the nineties are coming to an end. That's right, forget all that hogwash about the humming economy. The spoils are going to the same sector. A tiny sliver of society. They've rigged the game and told us they're invulnerable. But they're not.
For twenty years tech ruled. But now it's hit a wall. Turns out the people steering the ship had no maps for where they were going.
But now we're here.
Money isn't everything.
Those who have it don't know better.
It's down to you and me baby, we have to change this country, we need to stand up, AND WE ARE!
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